Beech 95-B55 accident near Coalinga, CA
On February 19, 1999, a Beech 95-B55 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Coalinga, CA. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- February 19, 1999
- Place
- Coalinga, CA
- Aircraft
- Beech 95-B55 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 36.190°N, 120.391°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001205X00180
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On February 18, 1999, about 1745 hours Pacific standard time, a Beech 95-B55, N125TW, was destroyed in an in-flight collision with mountainous terrain near Coalinga, California. The private pilot and pilot rated passenger were fatally injured. The personal flight was being operated under 14 CFR Part 91 and no flight plan was filed. The nearest weather reporting facility is 33 miles to the east; however, local area residents reported instrument meteorological conditions with rain and wind existed near the accident site. The flight originated at Sacramento, California, at 1649 on the day of the accident and was destined for Fullerton, California. The pilot and passenger had flown to northern California for dental work to be performed on the pilot. On the return trip they were receiving VFR advisories from ATC. They were maintaining VFR on top at 14,500 feet msl. A voice thought to be the pilot rated passenger transmitted "we're in big trouble up here" followed by incomplete and unreadable transmissions. The aircraft was lost from radio and radar coverage at 14,500 feet msl, about 20 miles southeast of the Panoche VOR. Search efforts were initiated and the wreckage was subsequently found February 19 near Santa Rita Peak, in San Benito County. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) coordinator made a request for radar data from NAS Lemoore. The tape was pulled, viewed, and then inadvertently erased following a breakdown in tape safeguarding procedures. Prior to departure from the Sacramento Executive Airport, the pilot purchased 58.0 gallons of fuel and obt
Probable cause
the pilot's inadvertant visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions.
More accidents in CA
- Douglas MD-83, Feb 1, 2000
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-32, Aug 31, 1986
- British Aerospace BAE-146-200, Dec 8, 1987
- Beech C-99, Aug 24, 1984
- Sikorsky S-61N, Aug 6, 2008
Browse: California · 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.
