Embraer EMB-110-P1 accident near Mt. Pleasant, Tennessee, May 6, 1989
On May 6, 1989 at about 7:00 am local time, a Embraer EMB-110-P1, registered N95PB, was destroyed in an accident near Mt. Pleasant, Tennessee (Maury County airport). It was an instructional 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
PILOT ATTEMPTED TO MAKE A VFR LANDING IN INSTRUMENT CONDITIONS THAT WERE BELOW MINIMUMS FOR THE PUBLISHED INSTRUMENT APPROACH AND COLLIDED WITH TREES AND THE GROUND AFTER ALLOWING THE AIRPLANE TO DESCEND BELOW THE PROPER ALTITUDE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 6, 1989 · about 7:00 am local time · cases in 1989
- Place
- Mt. Pleasant, Tennessee · Maury County · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Embraer EMB-110-P1 · all EMB-110-P1s on the register
- Registration
- N95PB · registry record · serial 110330
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER CONDUCTING GROUND TRAINING ALL DAY, THE INSTRUCTOR/DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS AND HIS TRAINEE FLEW AN EMB-110-P1 TO MEMPHIS TO EXCHANGE AIRPLANES. GROUND FOG HAD STARTED TO FORM PRIOR TO DEPARTURE. AFTER EXCHANGING AIRPLANES, THEY MADE THE RETURN FLIGHT TO COLUMBIA. THEY OBTAINED RADAR VECTORS TO THE FINAL APPROACH COURSE FOR THE SDF AT COLUMBIA. THE THICK FOG RESULTED IN A MISSED APPROACH. DURING THE MISSED APPROACH, THE RUNWAY WAS VISIBLE FROM ABOVE AND THE CREW INDICATED THAT THEY WOULD TRY FOR A VFR APPROACH AND LANDING. THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH TREES 2350 FEET FROM THE RUNWAY IN A WINGS LEVEL ATTITUDE. THE TOPS OF THE TREES WERE BROKEN 41 FEET ABOVE THE RUNWAY THRESHOLD ALTITUDE. THE TRAINEE HAD BEEN WITHOUT REST FOR AT LEAST 30 HOURS PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT.
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, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 11,020 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 143 in the last 90 days; 28 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 11,387 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, May 3, 1989; 44 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6A-34 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Flight Line, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: MEM Memphis TN at 6:05 am
- Destination: MRC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 23, 5,003 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 200° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:51 am from BNA, 41 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N95PB on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Embraer EMB-110 13 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Embraer 663 aircraft on the register
- Engine: P&W PT6A-34 42 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Maury County Regional · nearest airport
- Frederick W Smith Intl/Memphis Airport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Tennessee 1,198 since 1982 · 231 in the last ten years
- Tennessee 6,533 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ATL89FA142.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.