Beech BE-58 accident near Newtown, Ohio, January 27, 1994
On January 27, 1994 at about 3:02 am local time, a Beech BE-58, registered N555AC, was destroyed in an accident near Newtown, Ohio (Lunken airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT AFTER BECOMING SPATIALLY DISORIENTATED IN NIGHT INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC). FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE PILOT'S LACK OF EXPERIENCE IN THE TYPE OF OPERATION, HIS LACK OF RECENT INSTRUMENT EXPERIENCE, AND INADEQUATE SURVEILLANCE OF THE OPERATION BY THE CHIEF PILOT/COMPANY MANAGEMENT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 27, 1994 · about 3:02 am local time
- Place
- Newtown, Ohio · Lunken · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech BE-58
- Registration
- N555AC · registry record · serial TH-12
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT PREFLIGHTED THE AIRPLANE & RECEIVED A WEATHER BRIEFING FOR A NIGHT CARGO FLIGHT IN INSTRUMENT CONDITIONS. NO ABNORMALITIES WERE REPORTED BY THE PILOT, OR BY WITNESSES WHO SPOKE WITH HIM. HE TOOK OFF ON RUNWAY 6 & CONTACTED APPROACH CONTROL. AFTER ENTERING CLOUDS DURING THE INITIAL CLIMB, THE AIRPLANE TURNED FROM THE INTENDED COURSE & ENTERED A RAPID DESCENT. IT CRASHED ON A HEADING OF 290 DEGREES, WHILE IN A RIGHT WING LOW ATTITUDE. NO PREIMPACT MECHANICAL DEFICIENCIES WERE FOUND WITH THE AIRFRAME, ENGINES, OR SYSTEMS. THE PILOT HAD LOGGED 31.5 HOURS OF MULTIENGINE FLIGHT TIME & 65.7 HOURS OF INSTRUMENT FLIGHT TIME AS OF ABOUT 3 MONTHS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT; NO PILOT LOGBOOK ENTRIES WERE LOCATED TO VERIFY SUBSEQUENT FLIGHT TIME. THE CHIEF PILOT WAS A 'GOOD FRIEND' OF THE PILOT. HE HAD DOCUMENTED FLIGHT EXPERIENCE OF THE ACCIDENT PILOT, WHICH WAS NOT CONSISTENT WITH THE PILOT'S PERSONAL LOGBOOK OR VERBAL COMMENTS BY THE ACCIDENT PILOT, 6 DAYS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. REPORTEDLY, THIS WAS THE PILOT'S 4TH OR 5TH SINGLE-PILOT PART 135 FLIGHT.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,750 hours in all; 125 in this make and model; 125 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 1,675 as pilot in command; 1,100 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,225 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 14, 1993; 308 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,400 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LUK Cincinatti OH at 2:58 am
- Destination: BKL Cleveland OH
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 6, 5,128 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 030° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,700 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:12 am from LUK, 3 miles away
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.