- Date
- May 13, 1989, 15:30 local (22:30 UTC)
- Place
- Ely, NV
- Injuries
- 2 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N8049RBeech A24R
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 12, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890513011419A
- Case key
- 41011
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's improper decision to continue flight into IMC. Contributing to the accident were snow, obscuration and mountainous terrain.
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 proceeded into deteriorating wx conds and became trapped in a valley. The pilot reported that while following road to a mountain pass, he encountered snow and lost ground contact. The plt attempted a blind course reversal and collided with trees and terrain.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8049R
- Reported as
- Beech A24R
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- MC44
- Airframe hours
- 1,960
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-A1B, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- James F. Winfield
- Registered owner
- James F Winfield
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- EKO · Elko, NV
- Destination
- BLD · Boulder City, NV
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
- 23
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 493 total · 235 in this make and model · 466 as pilot in command · 65 in the last 90 days · 22 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- Variable at 20 knots, gusting 40
- Lowest ceiling
- 50 ft
- Temperature
- 36 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.