- Date
- April 15, 1984, 19:54 local (Apr 16, 1984, 00:54 UTC)
- Place
- Toms River, NJ
- Injuries
- 2 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N15VPBeech 35-C33
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19840415013809A
- Case key
- 35332
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.
Analysis
Plt stated that when using his bifocal corrective lenses, he had to tilt his head back to include the altimeter in his instrument scan. In the final phase of the approach, he failed to note the altimeter and collided with the terrain.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N15VP
- Reported as
- Beech 35-C33
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- CD-1024
- Airframe hours
- 3,407
- Engine
- Continental IO-470-K, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Richard Vander Ploeg
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 12, 1984 · 0 hours before
- Departed
- CRE · No.Myrtle Beach, SC
- Destination
- N44 · Toms River, NJ
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- N44 · Air Park Airport, runway 6, 5,953 × 80 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 51
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,543 total · 1,543 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 80° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 200 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 46 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- WRI, 15 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.