Fairchild SA226TC accident near Cleveland, Ohio, December 20, 1985
On December 20, 1985 at about 10:30 pm local time, a Fairchild SA226TC, registered N334BA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cleveland, Ohio (Cleveland-Hopkins airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 16 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
- December 20, 1985 · about 10:30 pm local time
- Place
- Cleveland, Ohio · Cleveland-Hopkins · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 16 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Fairchild SA226TC · all SA226TCs on the register
- Registration
- N334BA · no longer on the register · serial TC-307
- 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 CREW OBTAINED VISUAL CONTACT WITH THE RW EVIRONMENT 100 FT ABOVE DH. DURING THE LANDING ROLL THE A/C TRAVELED ALONG THE LEFT EDGE OF THE RUNWAY UNTIL IT COLLIDED WITH A SNOW BANK. THE RUNWAY WAS COVERED WITH PATCHES OF ICE AND PACKED SNOW.
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: 3,897 hours in all; 948 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 11,394 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, December 12, 1985; 47 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 22
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE331-3U (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DAY Dayton OH at 9:50 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 28, 6,015 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 270° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 200 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 21°F (-6°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:45 pm from CLE
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 14 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N334BA the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.