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Accidents · NTSB CHI86LA234 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Beech BE-95-55 accident near Shelbyville, Indiana, September 29, 1986

On September 29, 1986, a Beech BE-95-55, registered N562T, was substantially damaged in an accident near Shelbyville, Indiana (Shelbyville Municipal airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 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 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 29, 1986
Place
Shelbyville, Indiana · Shelbyville Municipal · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Beech BE-95-55
Registration
N562T · registry record · serial TC-35
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

WHILE AT CRUISE AFTER SUNSET, THE PILOTS DISCOVERED THAT THE LEFT PANEL LIGHTS AND THE OVERHEAD LIGHT WERE NOT OPERATING. A WHITE BEAM FLASHLIGHT WAS USED TO OBSERVE THE AIRSPEED INDICATOR, HOWEVER, CONTINUED USE OF THE FLASHLIGHT BLINDED THE PILOTS' VISION OF THE RUNWAY, ACCORDING TO THE INSTRUCTOR PLT. ADDITIONALLY, THE INSTRUCTOR STATED THAT ON SHORT FINAL POWER WAS REDUCED TO THE POINT THAT THE AIRCRAFT'S AIRSPEED DROPPED OVER THE TOUCHDOWN POINT AND THE AIRCRAFT MADE A HARD LANDING. DURING A PHONE CONVERSATION THE INSTRUCTOR PLT STATED THE PANEL LIGHTS WERE NOT CHECKED DURING PREFLIGHT INSPECTION.

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 multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine
  • Flight time: 1,193 hours in all; 6 in this make and model; 115 in the last 90 days; 1,093 as pilot in command
  • Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: rgt

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 4,377 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, June 1, 1986
  • Maximum gross weight: 4,880 lb
  • Seats: 6
  • Landing gear: retractable
  • Engine: Continental IO-470-L (piston); 0 hours total

The flight

  • Departed from: 3WE St. Louis MO at 10:30 pm
  • Destination: 3SM Shelbyville IN
  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 18, 3,737 ft by 50 ft
  • A second pilot was aboard

Weather at the time

  • Light: dusk
  • Visibility: 7 statute miles
  • Sky: clear
  • Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew2
Passengers2

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 N562T the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time

2006-02-25CHI06LA089 · accident near Sikeston, MO · substantial damage · no injuries

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.