Beech 65-B80 accident near Anderson, Indiana, August 20, 1995
On August 20, 1995 at about 4:40 pm local time, a Beech 65-B80, registered N8347N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Anderson, Indiana (Ace Airpark airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 12 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
seizure of the landing gear wheel bearing and separation of the landing gear outer wheel-half and tire from the aircraft after which directional control of the aircraft by the pilot was not possible.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 20, 1995 · about 4:40 pm local time
- Place
- Anderson, Indiana · Ace Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 12 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 65-B80 · all 65-B80s on the register
- Registration
- N8347N · no longer on the register · serial LD-380
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT WAS LOST DURING THE TAKEOFF ROLL. THE AIRCRAFT SKIDDED SIDEWAYS, VEERED OFF THE RUNWAY INTO AN AGRICULTURAL FIELD AND BOTH MAIN LANDING GEAR ASSEMBLIES COLLAPSED. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT THE TAKEOFF WAS NORMAL UNTIL THE AIRCRAFT SPEED REACHED 70 - 75 MILES PER HOUR WHEN HE HEARD A LOUD NOISE FROM THE LEFT SIDE OF THE AIRCRAFT AND THE AIRCRAFT VEERED TO THE LEFT. HE RETARDED THE ENGINE THROTTLES TO IDLE AND APPLIED RIGHT RUDDER CONTROL AND RIGHT WHEEL BRAKE BUT WAS UNABLE TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL. INSPECTION DETERMINED THAT THE WHEEL ASSEMBLY ON THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR HAD BROKEN INTO TWO PARTS. THE OUTER WHEEL HALF AND THE TIRE SEPARATED FROM THE AIRCRAFT AND THE LANDING GEAR AXLE DUG INTO THE TURF RUNWAY. FURTHER INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE OUTER BEARING OF THE WHEEL THAT FAILED HAD SEIZED FOR UNDETERMINED REASONS AND THE BOLTS HOLDING THE WHEEL HALVES TOGETHER HAD FAILED.
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: 1,360 hours in all; 135 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 1,180 as pilot in command; 1 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,135 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 20, 1994; 84 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IGSO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Skydive Anderson, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: 3AE at 4:40 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 3,580 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 010° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:45 pm from AID, 5 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 11 |
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.