Beech 95-B55 accident near Hawthorne, NV
On September 26, 1998, a Beech 95-B55 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Hawthorne, NV. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- September 26, 1998
- Place
- Hawthorne, NV
- Aircraft
- Beech 95-B55 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 38.480°N, 118.640°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001211X11089
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On September 26, 1998, at 0830 hours Pacific daylight time, a Beech 95-B55 airplane, N554MB, collided with mountainous terrain following the loss of engine power approximately 10 miles northwest of Hawthorne, Nevada. The aircraft, owned and operated by High Performance Aircraft, Incorporated, was destroyed in the collision sequence and post crash fire. The pilot, the sole occupant, sustained fatal injuries. The personal flight originated at Red Bluff Municipal Airport, Red Bluff, California, at an unknown time. According to family members, the pilot told his wife that he was going to leave Red Bluff approximately 0530-0600 to depart for St. George, Utah. He was going to St. George to run in a marathon race. According to records from the Rancho Murietta AFSS, the pilot called the flight service station at 0635 and obtained a full weather briefing. He told the briefer that he planned to fly visual flight rules (VFR) from Red Bluff to Sacramento to Reno at 11,500 feet, with a planned departure time of 0730. The briefer told the pilot that VFR flight was not recommended. The pilot asked about flying from Red Bluff south to the Fresno/Bakersfield area, then eastward across the Sierra Nevada Mountains to St. George, Utah. The briefer told the pilot that VFR was not recommended due to mountain obscuration, icing, and turbulence along his proposed route of flight. The pilot took off from the airport at an unknown time, activated his VFR fight plan, and began to talk with air traffic control (ATC). The aircraft was on VFR flight following with Oakland Air Route Tra
Probable cause
The pilot's disregard of the weather briefing information and his decision to attempt flight into forecast adverse weather conditions, which led to an encounter with icing conditions beyond the performance capability of the aircraft. The pilot's disregard for the pilot operating handbook prohibition against flight into icing conditions is also causal.
More accidents in NV
- Cessna 425, Jan 12, 1992
- Cessna TU206G, Dec 7, 1986
- Beech A36TC, Dec 25, 2003
- Cessna T21OL, Mar 1, 1982
- Pilatus PC-12/45, Feb 25, 2023
Browse: Nevada · Beech aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
