Beech 19A accident near Mcarthur, Ohio, December 24, 2011
On December 24, 2011 at about 6:50 pm local time, a Beech 19A, registered N33SR, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach (VFR go-around) near Mcarthur, Ohio (Vinton County Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to maintain airplane control during an attempted go-around.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 24, 2011 · about 6:50 pm local time
- Place
- Mcarthur, Ohio · Vinton County Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 19A · all 19As on the register
- Registration
- N33SR · no longer on the register · serial MB-443
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A witness reported hearing an airplane "rev up" and saw the accident airplane above the runway and climbing toward the west. The witness heard but did not see the impact. The airplane impacted a parallel road that ran along the south side of an east-west runway. The impact point was adjacent to the west end of the runway. The damage to the airplane, which included rearward crushing of the forward fuselage and the outboard portion of the left wing, was consistent with the airplane impacting the ground in a nose-down, left-wing-low attitude. Postaccident examinations of the airplane did not reveal any evidence consistent with a preimpact failure or malfunction that would have precluded normal operation. It is likely that the pilot was attempting a go-around to the west when the accident occurred. The location, direction of travel, and airplane attitude at the time of impact was indicative of the airplane departing controlled flight during the initial climb.
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
What happened, in order
- Aerodynamic stall/spin during approach (VFR go-around) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during uncontrolled descent
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › (general) › Not attained/maintained
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › (general) › (general) › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 127 hours in all; 12 in this make and model
- Last flight review: September 28, 2010
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,973 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 7, 2011
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Unknown
- Destination: 22I Mcarthur OH
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 3,725 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.36 inHg
- Observation at 7:35 pm from UNI, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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 CEN12FA115.