Beech 58 accident near Wichita, Kansas, April 5, 1991
On April 5, 1991 at about 10:30 pm local time, a Beech 58, registered N58SE, was substantially damaged in an accident near Wichita, Kansas (Wichita Mid-Continent airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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
REMEDIAL ACTION WAS DELAYED BY THE INSTRUCTOR PILOT. A FACTOR RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WAS AN EXCESSIVE RATE OF DESCENT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 5, 1991 · about 10:30 pm local time
- Place
- Wichita, Kansas · Wichita Mid-Continent · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 58 · all 58s on the register
- Registration
- N58SE · registry record · serial TH-1587
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE INSTRUCTOR SAID THAT THE FLIGHT WAS TO TRAIN THE SPOUSE OF THE ACFT'S OWNER TO BE ABLE TO CONTROL THE ACFT IN CASE OF THE PILOT'S INCAPACITATION. AFTER A RELATIVELY HIGH DESCENT RATE, THE ACFT TOUCHED DOWN HARD, THEN BOUNCED BACK INTO THE AIR. THE CFI TOOK OVER THE CONTROLS, AND LANDED THE ACFT. THE NOSE GEAR COLLAPSED AND THE ACFT SLID TO A STOP, SUSTAINING SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.
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; instructor: instrument helicopter; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,473 hours in all; 459 in this make and model; 43 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 2,437 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 232 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 28, 1991; 36 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,500 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-550-C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 19, 7,302 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 10:50 pm from ICT, 1 miles away
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.
Other NTSB records under N58SE 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.