Beech A45 accident near Deer Harbor, WA
On June 7, 2024, a Beech A45 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Deer Harbor, WA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- June 7, 2024
- Place
- Deer Harbor, WA
- Aircraft
- Beech A45 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 48.620°N, 123.042°W
- NTSB ID
- 20240607194417
Official records · WPR24FA184
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn June 7, 2024, about 1140 Pacific daylight time, a Beech A45 airplane, N268AF, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Deer Harbor, Washington. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations part 91 personal flight. The airplane was based at Skagit Regional Airport (BVS), Burlington, Washington, and stored in a museum facility founded by the pilot. The pilot’s son, who was working at the museum on the day of the accident, reported that the pilot arrived that morning and appeared to be in good spirits. He stated that he was going to perform an “Orcas sortie,” a phrase the pilot used to describe a flight around the San Juan Island archipelago, with a touch-and-go landing at Orcas Island Airport (ORS), Eastsound, Washington, and a pass over his previous home on Orcas Island. The pilot boarded the airplane about 1050, and at 1100, a family friend (who ultimately witnessed the accident) received a text message from him indicating that he would be flying past her house, which was located close to his old home on the western shore of Orcas Island, about 1140. The friend reported that such flights were not unusual, and this was the first time he had performed one this year. She stated that he typically performed two flybys, and although sometimes he rocked the airplane’s wings as he passed by, he had never performed an aerobatic maneuver. Limited ADS-B data was available for the flight; however, data from nearby radar facilities showed a target that departed BVS about 1113 transmitting a 1200 beac
Probable cause
The pilot’s decision to perform an aerobatic maneuver at low level, and his misjudged entry altitude for the maneuver, which resulted in impact with water.
More accidents in WA
- Dehavilland DHC-3, Sep 4, 2022
- Cessna 208B, Oct 8, 2007
- Cessna 172P, Dec 7, 1991
- Piper PA-32-260, Jul 29, 2001
- Beech A60, Nov 21, 1992
Browse: Washington · 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.
