Swearingen SA-226TC accident near Laurel, Mississippi, January 2, 1983
On January 2, 1983 at about 9:44 am local time, a Swearingen SA-226TC, registered N5291M, was substantially damaged in an accident near Laurel, Mississippi (Pine Belt Regional airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 20 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 2, 1983 · about 9:44 am local time · cases in 1983
- Place
- Laurel, Mississippi · Pine Belt Regional · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 20 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Swearingen SA-226TC · all SA-226TCs on the register
- Registration
- N5291M · no longer on the register · serial TC202E
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT 11,000 FT MSL DURING CRUISE A PROP SEPARATED FROM THE LEFT ENG. THE ENG WAS FEATHERED & THE PLT OBSERVED THE ENG DISPLACED INBOARD & DOWNWARD. AN EMERGENCY LANDING WAS MADE & UPON LANDING THE LEFT MAIN GEAR WAS FOUND TO BE RETRACTED.THE ACFT SLID TO A STOP COMING TO REST ON THE ADJACENT TAXIWAY. METALLURGICAL EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT THE BLADE FAILED FROM FATIGUE INITIATING AT CORROSION PITS ON THE INTERIOR OF THE FAILED BLADE BALANCE HOLE. THE PAINT IN THE BALANCE HOLE WAS DISCONTINUOUS & NON-UNIFORM. THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE OF THE HOLE HAVING BEEN SHOTPEENED. OVERHAUL INSTRUCTIONS REQUIRE SHOTPEENING OF THE BALANCE HOLE. TSO WAS CALCULATED AS 1565.8 HRS.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,469 hours in all; 2,800 in this make and model; 82 in the last 90 days; 5,135 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,437 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, December 20, 1982; 42 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 20
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Airesearch TPE3313UW303G (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BTR Baton Rouge LA
- Destination: PDK Chamblee GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 18, 6,501 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 19 |
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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N5291M: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Swearingen SA-226 48 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Swearingen 88 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Airesearch TPE3313UW303G 4 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Hattiesburg/Laurel Regional · nearest airport
- Baton Rouge Metro, Ryan Field · departed from
- Dekalb-Peachtree Airport · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Mississippi 844 since 1982 · 89 in the last ten years
- Mississippi 2,601 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ATL83LA080.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.