Canadair CL-44 incident near Greensboro, North Carolina, September 26, 1989
On September 26, 1989 at about 10:15 am local time, a Canadair CL-44, registered N104BB, was involved in an incident near Greensboro, North Carolina (Greensboro airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 3 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 FIRST OFFICER'S FAILURE TO FOLLOW APPROVED MISSED APPROACH PROCEDURES, AND HIS ATTEMPT TO TAKE THE FLIGHT CONTROLS FROM THE CAPTAIN WHO WAS FLYING THE AIRPLANE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 26, 1989 · about 10:15 am local time
- Place
- Greensboro, North Carolina · Greensboro
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Canadair CL-44
- Registration
- N104BB · no longer on the register · serial 24
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE ATTEMPTING AN INSTRUMENT APPROACH TO GREENSBORO, NC, THE FIRST OFFICER REFUSED TO FOLLOW MISSED APPROACH INSTRUCTIONS AND TOOK THE FLIGHT CONTROLS FROM THE CAPTAIN. AFTER A STRUGGLE, THE CAPTAIN AND FLIGHT ENGINEER REGAINED CONTROL OF THE AIRPLANE. DURING THE STRUGGLE, THE AIRPLANE CAME WITHIN 30 FEET OF COLLIDING WITH A PASSENGER TERMINAL AND PARKED AIRPLANES. THE FIRST OFFICER'S MENTAL STATE WAS SUCH THAT HE BELIEVED THAT HIS ACTIONS WERE IN ACCORDANCE WITH COMPANY POLICIES.
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; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 6,800 hours in all; 6,000 in this make and model; 235 in the last 90 days; 66 in the last 30 days; 1,550 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 57,511 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, August 13, 1989; 262 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 210,000 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rolls-Royce MK-515 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Aircraft Marketing INC.,
The flight
- Departed from: Aquadilla PR at 5:12 am
- Destination: Knoxville TN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 5, 10,000 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 040° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 400 ft; not recorded at 400 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:15 am from GSO
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N104BB the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.