Beech BE-55-T42A accident near Raleigh, North Carolina, October 12, 2001
On October 12, 2001, a Beech BE-55-T42A, registered N44RA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Raleigh, North Carolina (Raleigh-Durham International airport). It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper flare, and improper recovery from a bounced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 12, 2001
- Place
- Raleigh, North Carolina · Raleigh-Durham International
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech BE-55-T42A
- Registration
- N44RA · registry record · serial TC-916
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During landing, the airplane bounced three times on the nosewheel with each successive bounce worst than the previous one. The pilot then added power and completed the landing. The airplane sustained damage to the nose gear, blade tips of the left propeller, left engine mount, and the fuselage forward of the cabin door. No mechanical problems were noted during the post-crash airframe examination, nor did the pilot report a mechanical problem with the airplane during the landing.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,080 hours in all; 230 in this make and model; 118 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: May 7, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,555 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 11, 2001; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Continental IO-470-L (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Continental IO-470-L (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Ram Air Freight, Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: CLT Charlotte NC at 11:30 pm
- Destination: RDU Raleigh-Durham NC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 23R, 10,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 150° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.21 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.