Beech B23 accident near Crossville, Tennessee, December 24, 1987
On December 24, 1987 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Beech B23, registered N6571R, was destroyed in an accident near Crossville, Tennessee. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. 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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 24, 1987 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Crossville, Tennessee · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech B23 · all B23s on the register
- Registration
- N6571R · no longer on the register · serial M1597
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
N6571R CRASHED INTO TREES NEAR THE VOR ON TOP ON HINCH MTN AT ABOUT 3000 FEET MSL. TREES AT THE CRASH SITE INDICATED WINGS LEVEL WITH A DESCENT ANGLE OF ABOUT 10 DEGREES. WEATHER IN THE AREA WAS IMC, CHARACTERIZED BY LOW CEILINGS (LOWER THAN THE MTN TOP ELEVATION), RAIN AND FOG. THE PILOT HAD REFUELED AT LIVINGSTON, TN EN ROUTE TO FLORIDA. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT BLUFTON, OH. THE PLT REPORTED THAT THE WEATHER WAS GETTING UNFAVORABLE AND HE MADE A 180 DEGREE TURN. HE ALSO REPORTED, AFTER THE ACCIDENT, THAT HE HAD EXPERIENCED A POWER LOSS AND WAS UNABLE TO RESTORE POWER. A TREELIMB WITH 2 PROPELLER SLASHES INDICATED SUBSTANTIAL ENGINE RMP AT TREE CONTACT. THE PLT PURCHASED THE AIRPLANE 4 MOS BEFORE THE ACDT AND REPLACED THE ENGINE WITH A REMANUFACTURED ENGINE IN NOV 87. HIS FAMILY SAID HE HAD FLOWN THE AIRPLANE ABOUT 7 HOURS AFTERWARD, BEFORE THIS FLT. THE PLT HELD A PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATE AND WAS NOT INSTRUMENT RATED. THE PILOT HAD NOT FILED A FLT PLAN AND THERE WAS NO RECORD OF RADIO CONTACTS DRG THE FLT.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 1,600 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,547 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 30, 1987; 45 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,450 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4J (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 8A3 Livingston TN
- Destination: X60 Williston FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 10 knots, gusting 16
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from CSV, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.