Beech 58 incident near Washington, District of Columbia, August 31, 1984
On August 31, 1984 at about 5:23 am local time, a Beech 58, registered N72TM, suffered minor damage in an incident near Washington, District of Columbia (National airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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 incident. 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
- August 31, 1984 · about 5:23 am local time
- Place
- Washington, District of Columbia · National · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 58 · all 58s on the register
- Registration
- N72TM · registry record · serial TH 213
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT MADE AN EMERGENCY LANDING ON RWY 18 FOLLOWING A LOSS OF POWER IN THE RT ENG & A SUBSEQUENT IN-FLIGHT FIRE. INVESTIGATION REVEALED A CRACK IN THE #1 CYL THAT ORIGINATED AT THE EXHAUST PORT, DOWNSTREAM OF THE VALVE. THE CRACK PROPAGATED THROUGH FATIQUE TO THE TOP SPARK PLUG HOLE. EVENTUALLY, IT PROGRESSED TO THE POINT THAT THE FLAME PATH (DURING THE COMBUSITION CYCLES), TORCHED THROUGH NEAR THE SPARK PLUG HOLE.
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 single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,800 hours in all; 625 in this make and model; 104 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,310 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, August 23, 1984; 15 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-C7 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Gibson Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: DCA Washington DC at 5:21 am
- Destination: CLT Charlotte NC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 18, 6,869 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 290° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 12,000 ft; scat at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:50 am from DCA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.