Fairchild SA-266TC accident near Galesburg, Illinois, September 25, 1986
On September 25, 1986 at about 1:35 am local time, a Fairchild SA-266TC, registered N327BA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Galesburg, Illinois (Galesburg Municipal airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 12 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- September 25, 1986 · about 1:35 am local time
- Place
- Galesburg, Illinois · Galesburg Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 12 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Fairchild SA-266TC
- Registration
- N327BA · registry record · serial TC 249
- 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
ALL LANDING GEAR ON THE AIRCRAFT PREMATURELY RETRACTED DURING TAKOFF ROTATION. THE CAPTAIN ABORTED THE TAKEOFF AND THE AIRCRAFT SLID TO A STOP ON THE RUNWAY. SUBSEQUENT GEAR RETRACTION TESTS REVEALED NO MECHANICAL MALFUNCTIONS WITHIN THE LANDING GEAR SYSTEM. SA-226 SERIES AIRCRAFT ARE PRONE TO INADVERTENT GEAR RETRACTIONS DUE TO THE LOCATION OF THE GEAR SELECTOR LEVER NEAR THE PILOT'S RIGHT KNEE. IT IS EASY TO ACCIDENTLY MOVE THE LEVER OUT OF THE 'DOWN' DETENT. IN THIS ACCIDENT THE CAPTAIN ABORTED THE TAKEOFF DURING ROTATION AT APPROX 113 KTS. V1 SPEED FOR THIS TAKEOFF WAS 108 KTS.
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, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all; 250 in the last 90 days; 80 in the last 30 days; 5,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 12,391 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, September 7, 1986
- Maximum gross weight: 10,062 lb
- Seats: 22
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE-331-3UW30 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: UIN Quincy IL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 20, 5,800 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:55 am from GBG, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 10 |
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.