Swearingen SA-226 accident near Chantilly, Virginia, December 18, 1987
On December 18, 1987, a Swearingen SA-226, registered N23AZ, was substantially damaged in an accident near Chantilly, Virginia (Washington/Dulles Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries; 6 others were unhurt. 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 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 18, 1987
- Place
- Chantilly, Virginia · Washington/Dulles Intl
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries; 6 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Swearingen SA-226 · all SA-226s on the register
- Registration
- N23AZ · registry record · serial TC-260
- 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
THE ACFT HAD DESCENDED THROUGH A CLOUD LAYER ENROUTE FOR THE SCHEDULED LNDG AT IAD AND ACCORDING TO THE CREW HAD PICKED UP SOME TRACE RIME ICE ON ITS WING SURFACES. ALTHOUGH PITOT AND SAS (STALL AVOIDANCE SYSTEM) HEAT WERE USED THE CAPTAIN ELECTED NOT TO USE ENGINE INLET ANTI-ICE. JUST INSIDE THE OUTER MARKER THE LEFT ENGINE LOST POWER FOLLOWED SHORTLY BY THE RIGHT ENGINE. THE CAPTAIN WAS ABLE TO SET THE ACFT DOWN IN AN OPEN FIELD WHERE THE GEAR COLLAPSED DURING THE LANDING ROLL. THE ENGINES WERE SUCCESSFULLY RUN-UP AT THE GARRETT FACILITY. THE FLT MANUAL CONTAINS A WARNING AND A NOTE STATING THAT ENGINE HEAT AND CONTINUOUS IGNITION MUST BE USED AFTER LEAVING ICING CONDITIONS UNTIL THE PLT IS CONFIDENT THAT ANY SIGNIFICANT RESIDUAL ICE WILL NOT BE INJESTED INTO THE ENGINES. ICE WAS FOUND LYING BENEATH THE RT WING WHICH MATCHED THE CURVATURE OF THE LEADING EDGE OF THE WING. A ROUND CONICAL SHAPED PIECE OF ICE WAS FOUND ALONG THE WRECKAGE PATH WHICH MATCHED THE NOSE OF THE PROPELLER SPINNER.
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
- Flight time: 7,200 hours in all; 400 in this make and model; 142 in the last 90 days; 7,080 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 12,820 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, December 10, 1987; 38 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 19
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE331-I0UA-5 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EWR Newark NJ at 11:31 pm
- Destination: IAD Chantilly VA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 1R, 11,500 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 330° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 4,200 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 36°F (2°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 1 | ||
| Passengers | 1 | 5 |
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.