Beech BE200 incident near Rochester, Indiana, March 16, 1994
On March 16, 1994 at about 1:27 pm local time, a Beech BE200, registered N210SU, suffered minor damage in an incident near Rochester, Indiana. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the airplane painter/refinishers' failure to follow appropriate procedures/directives pertinent to the masking, stripping, painting and cleaning of the airplane cabin windows, which resulted in the in-flight failure of the right aft cabin window. A related factor is inadequate maintenance inspection by company maintenance personnel.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 16, 1994 · about 1:27 pm local time
- Place
- Rochester, Indiana · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech BE200
- Registration
- N210SU · registry record · serial BB420
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOTS REPORTED THEY WERE IN CRUISE FLIGHT AT 16,000 FEET, WHEN THEY HEARD A LOUD NOISE, FOLLOWED BY 'MASTER WARNING' AND 'CABIN ALTITUDE' LIGHTS, AND A LOSS OF CABIN PRESSURIZATION. THEY STATED WHEN THEY LOOKED BACK TO THE REAR CABIN THEY SAW THE RIGHT REAR CABIN WINDOW HAD FAILED. THE PILOTS DIVERTED AND LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. POSTINCIDENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE FAILED WIND0W WAS INSTALLED IN OCTOBER, 1985. THE AIRPLANE HAD FLOWN APPROXIMATELY 2100 HOURS AND BEEN REPAINTED TWICE SINCE THAT DATE. THE AIRPLANE HAD FLOWN 4.8 HOURS SINCE THE MOST RECENT REPAINTING. THE MANUFACTURER'S MANUALS AND SERVICE INSTRUCTIONS CAUTIONED THAT EXPOSURE TO PAINT, PAINT STRIPPER, SOLVENTS AND FUMES COULD RESULT IN CRACKED WINDOWS. THEY RECOMMENDED THE USE OF PRESSURE SENSITIVE MASKS, AND STATED, '...THE MASK MUST EXTEND BEYOND THE WINDOW CUTOUTS...[TO] PREVENT THE CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS FROM ATTACKING THE WINDOW EDGES.' EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE'S WINDOWS REVEALED EVIDENCE OF STRIPPER AND PAINT OVERSPRAY.
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: 4,200 hours in all; 175 in this make and model; 50 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 3,700 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,379 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, March 12, 1994; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 9
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OSU Columbus OH at 12:30 pm
- Destination: SPW Spencer IA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 310° at 57 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: -2°F (-19°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.