Beech H-18 accident near Louisville, Kentucky, February 12, 1986
On February 12, 1986 at about 1:52 am local time, a Beech H-18, registered N148PA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Louisville, Kentucky. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 12, 1986 · about 1:52 am local time
- Place
- Louisville, Kentucky · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech H-18 · all H-18s on the register
- Registration
- N148PA · no longer on the register · serial BA-645
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND AFTER STALLING DURING TAKEOFF. WITNESSES REPORTED THAT THE ACFT PITCHED UP IN TWO INCREMENTS, CLIMBED SHARPLY TO ABOUT 200 FT AGL, STALLED DROPPED THE RT WING AND DESCENDED, IMPACTING THE GROUND IN A FLAT ATTITUDE.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,663 hours in all; 203 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,405 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 9, 1985; 96 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10,100 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-985-AN14B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Ace Air Cargo Express,Inc.
The flight
- Destination: CMH Columbus OH
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,200 ft
- Temperature: 23°F (-5°C), dew point 10°F (-12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 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.