- Date
- July 8, 1992, 09:33 local (16:33 UTC)
- Place
- Pierce, ID
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N23LBBeech 58
- Weather
- Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 14, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920708033049A
- Case key
- 41587
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
Inflight loss of control when aircraft control was not maintained. Factors to the accident were: flight into known adverse weather and thunderstorm activity.
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
Prior to takeoff, the pilot obtained a weather briefing and was informed of mountain obscurement, rain showers, and thunderstorm activity in the area of the flight path. The pilot had filed the route of flight direct from boise, ID, to mccall, ID, to thompson falls, MT, to kalispell, MT. The accident site was located approximately 45 miles east of the direct line of flight path in mountainous terrain. Radar data identifies the flight as maneuvering on various headings before the flight dropped from radar contact. The wreckage was found confined to a deep crater with the nose of the airplane at the crater's deepest point. It was estimated that the airplane collided with the terrain in an approximate 70 degree nose down attitude. There was no evidence found to indicate a mechanical failure or malfunction.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N23LB
- Reported as
- Beech 58
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- TH-837
- Airframe hours
- 2,190
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-C, 285 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Sinclair, Richard C.
- Registered owner
- Sinclair, Richard C.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 1, 1992 · 6 hours before
- Departed
- BOI · Boise, ID
- Destination
- FCA · Kalispell, MT
- Flight plan
- VFR
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
- 62
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 1,416 total · 123 in this make and model · 20 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Day
- Wind
- 270° at 10 knots
- Temperature
- 70 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.