- Date
- September 2, 1987, 19:00 local (23:00 UTC)
- Place
- Portland, ME
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N204BHBeech 99
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report July 10, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 30536
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the incident.
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
The acft was cruising at 2500 ft with no passengers on board. The co-pilot went into the cabin and noticed a loud hissing noise around the main cabin door. He checked the handle and locking pins and noticed the door was locked. He told the captain who directed him to take control of the aircraft and the captain went back into the cabin to check the door. The captain said he may have bumped the door and it flew open. He was tangled up in the door cables and stayed with the aircraft. He received minor injuries. The co-pilot made an uneventful landing after declaring an emergency. The door was examined and no problem was found with the door. The aircraft was returned to service without repair. Beech aircraft company said there would be a 127 lb force pulling the door outward at 200 ktas and 2500 ft. the flight crew had reported they were in normal cruise when the door opened.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N204BH
- Reported as
- Beech 99
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- U-47
- Airframe hours
- 28,700
- Engine
- P&W PT-6-20, 500 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- Bar Harbor Airlines, doing business as Eastern Express
- Registered owner
- Stewart M. Ayton
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · July 1, 1987 · 30 hours before
- Departed
- LEW · Auburn, ME
- Destination
- BOS · Boston, MA
- Flight plan
- VFR
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 45
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 4,351 total · 2,731 in this make and model · 3,778 as pilot in command · 300 in the last 90 days · 102 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 260° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 46 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PWM