Beech 65-88 incident near Kalamazo, Michigan, March 26, 1982
On March 26, 1982, a Beech 65-88, registered N20HR, suffered minor damage in an incident near Kalamazo, Michigan (Kalamazoo airport). 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).
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
- March 26, 1982
- Place
- Kalamazo, Michigan · Kalamazoo · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 65-88 · all 65-88s on the register
- Registration
- N20HR · no longer on the register · serial LP-35
- 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
PRIOR TO LANDING THE PILOT COULD NOT EXTEND THE RIGHT MAIN LANDING GEAR. HE ATTEMPTED TO EXTEND THE GEAR BY RECYCLING THE SYSTEM AND BY USING THE MANUAL EXTENSION, BUT TO NO AVAIL. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE AIRCRAFT WAS LANDED ON A PAVED RUNWAY WITH THE GEAR RETRACTED. DURING THE LANDING, THE UNDERSIDE OF THE FUSELAGE AND FLAPS RECEIVED MINOR DAMAGE. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE DRIVE SHAFT ASSEMBLY, PN 50-810240, FAILED FROM FATIGUE.
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: 5,980 hours in all; 107 in this make and model; 98 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 4,819 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,372 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 38 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IGSO-540-A1D (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Basler Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: Louisville KY at 4:25 pm
- Destination: Kalamazoo MI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 35, 6,499 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 300° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 97°F (36°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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.
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.