- Date
- March 20, 1985, 16:45 local (20:45 UTC)
- Place
- St. Thomas
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N49MABeech E18S
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850320011479A
- Case key
- 31373
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Loss of control - on ground/water
Landing gear,tailwheel - unlockedFactor
Aircraft preflight - inadequateFactor
Weather condition - tailwindFactor
Directional control - not maintainedCause
Ground loop/swerve - inadvertentCause
Analysis
The plt lost control of the acft during takeoff with a slight tailwind component & the acft ground looped. Later, the plt realized that the tail wheel was not locked.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N49MA
- Reported as
- Beech E18S
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- BA-238
- Airframe hours
- 13,321
- Engine
- P&W R-985-AN14B, 450 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Four Star Aviation,Inc.
- Registered owner
- Francis Mccarthy Jr.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · March 1, 1985 · 19 hours before
- Destination
- San Juan, PR
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
- Airport
- STT · Cyril E. King, runway 27, 5,358 × 150 ft, asphalt
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 39
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 5,401 total · 71 in this make and model · 5,095 as pilot in command · 71 in the last 90 days · 67 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 82 °F, dew point 64 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- STT
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.