Beech 35-C33A accident near Onamia, Minnesota, March 31, 1988
On March 31, 1988 at about 1:50 am local time, a Beech 35-C33A, registered N2766T, was destroyed in an accident near Onamia, Minnesota. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
PILOT'S POOR JUDGEMENT IN CONTINUING VFR FLIGHT INTO IMC CONDITIONS, AND HIS SUBSEQUENT DISORIENTATION AND FAILURE TO MAINTAIN AIRCRAFT CONTROL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 31, 1988 · about 1:50 am local time
- Place
- Onamia, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 35-C33A · all 35-C33As on the register
- Registration
- N2766T · registry record · serial CE-157
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS EN ROUTE ON A BUSINESS FLT WHEN A GROUND WITNESS OBSERVED IT FLYING 'IN AND OUT OF CLOUDS IN SNOW SHOWERS' SHORTLY BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. LOCAL RESIDENTS HEARD THE ENG AS THE ACFT PASSED LOW OVERHEAD, THEN SAW THE ACFT JUST BEFORE IT CRASHED IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN, LEFT WING LOW ATTITUDE. WITNESSES RPRTD THAT LARGE WET SNOW FLAKES WERE FALLING & THE VISIBILITY WAS ABOUT 1-1/2 MI IN SNOW AND FOG. THE PLT HAD GOTTEN A WEATHER BRIEFING; THE AREA FORECAST INCLUDED FLT PRECAUTIONS FOR TURBULENCE & ICING CONDITIONS ALONG THE ROUTE. THE PRIVATE PLT WAS NOT INSTRUMENT RATED; HE HAD LOGGED 124 HRS OF FLT TIME, OF WHICH 4.2 HRS WERE LOGGED AS INSTRUMENT TIME. HE HAD LOGGED ONLY 2.2 HRS IN COMPLEX ACFT, WHICH INCLUDED THE CHECK-OUT IN THIS ACFT. THE 2ND OCCUPANT IN THE ACFT WAS ALSO A PLT.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 124 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 82 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,231 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 26, 1987; 128 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,300 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Bemidji Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: BJI Bemidji MN
- Destination: MSP Minneapolis MN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.