Beech E-18 accident near Minneapolis, Minnesota, October 5, 1990
On October 5, 1990 at about 8:45 am local time, a Beech E-18, registered N703M, was substantially damaged in an accident near Minneapolis, Minnesota (Minneapolis International 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
FAILURE OF THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT DURING LANDING ROLL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 5, 1990 · about 8:45 am local time
- Place
- Minneapolis, Minnesota · Minneapolis International · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech E-18 · all E-18s on the register
- Registration
- N703M · registry record · serial BA-219
- 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
DURING LANDING ROLLOUT ON RUNAWAY 29R AT MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, THE AIRCRAFT SWERVED TO THE RIGHT, PERFORMED A GROUND LOOP, AND DEPARTED THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY AFTER THE TAILWHEEL TOUCHED DOWN. BOTH MAIN LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED WHEN THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED THE RUNWAY.
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 single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,500 hours in all; 120 in this make and model; 250 in the last 90 days; 70 in the last 30 days; 1,600 as pilot in command; 576 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 10,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-985-AN-14B (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Viking Express, INC
The flight
- Departed from: DPA W. Chicago IL at 6:15 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 29R, 8,202 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 250° at 6 knots
- Sky: scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:36 am from MSP
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.