Beech 95-B55 accident near Manteo, North Carolina, September 30, 1987
On September 30, 1987 at about 2:45 pm local time, a Beech 95-B55, registered N6343X, was destroyed in an accident near Manteo, North Carolina. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 5 people were killed. 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
- September 30, 1987 · about 2:45 pm local time
- Place
- Manteo, North Carolina · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 5 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 95-B55 · all 95-B55s on the register
- Registration
- N6343X · no longer on the register · serial TC-2445
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WITNESS OBSERVED ACFT SETTLE INTO OCEAN DURING LOW LEVEL CRUISE FLT ADJACENT TO BEACH. WX WAS OVRCST, INDISTINCT HORIZON & CALM SEA. IFR FLT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED BUT NO CONTACT WAS MADE WITH ATC. ENGINES AND PROPELLER EXAMINATION DID NOT REVEAL A MECHANICAL FAILURE. DAMAGE TO PROP BLADES INDICATED CRUISE OPERATING RANGE AT IMPACT. WATER AND SALT CORROSION DAMAGE PREVENTED DETAILED ACFT SYSTEM EXAMS.
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; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,310 hours in all; 196 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 2,152 as pilot in command; 946 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,295 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 11, 1987
- Maximum gross weight: 5,100 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470-L (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: MQI Manteo NC at 2:41 pm
- Destination: RDU Raleigh NC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:45 pm from MQI, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 4 |
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.