Learjet 24 accident near Atlanta, Georgia, November 13, 1989
On November 13, 1989 at about 1:24 pm local time, a Learjet 24, registered N500P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Atlanta, Georgia (Hartsfield). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT IN COMMAND'S FAILURE TO INSURE HIS AIRPLANE WAS CLEAR OF A PARKED AIRCRAFT WHILE MANEUVERING TO PARK.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 13, 1989 · about 1:24 pm local time
- Place
- Atlanta, Georgia · Hartsfield
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Learjet 24 · all 24s on the register
- Registration
- N500P · registry record · serial 24-119
- 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
WHILE TAXING ONTO RAMP AFTER LANDING AND PREPARING TO MAKE A 180 DEGREE TURN TO PARK BETWEEN TWO PARKED AIRCRAFT, THE PILOT MISJUDGED THE HEIGHT OF HIS AIRPLANE'S TAIL AS HE TAXIED UNDER THE WING OF A PARKED AIRPLANE. THE TAIL COLLIDED WITH THE WING OF THE PARKED AIRPLANE.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 5,700 hours in all; 2,300 in this make and model; 250 in the last 90 days; 90 in the last 30 days; 4,700 as pilot in command; 700 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme
- Maximum gross weight: 13,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CJ-610-4 (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Operator: Connie Kalitta Services, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: AMA Amarillo TX at 11:19 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ATL90LA026.