Learjet 35A accident near Sheboygan, Wisconsin, October 29, 1997
On October 29, 1997 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Learjet 35A, registered N62MB, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sheboygan, Wisconsin (Sheboygan County Muni airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
a deer that ran in front of the airplane during the takeoff phase. A factor in this accident was the lack of an airport perimeter fence to prevent deer from getting onto the runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 29, 1997 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Sheboygan, Wisconsin · Sheboygan County Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Learjet 35A · all 35As on the register
- Registration
- N62MB · registry record · serial 282
- 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
The airplane had just reached its rotation speed during takeoff, when a deer '...bolted across the front of the aircraft from right to left...' striking the left wing. The pilot said he had to use full right aileron and rudder to keep the airplane level until it reached a low cruise speed. The middle third of the left wing's leading edge was crushed aft. The pilot continued the flight to a larger airport and landed without further incident. The departure runway (where the accident occurred) was located between 2-wooded areas that were about 600 and 1,100-feet from its edge. The airport did not have a perimeter fence around it that would prevent deer from entering the runway environment. The Federal Aviation Administration, in concert with the accident airport's state and county authorities have agreed to install a perimeter fence that is designed to keep deer from straying onto the airport property.
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, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,716 hours in all; 430 in this make and model; 108 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 11,695 as pilot in command; 3,711 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,787 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, June 12, 1997; 161 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 18,300 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE-731-2-2B (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: West Bend Air
The flight
- Departed from: SBM Sheyboygan WI at 6:00 pm
- Destination: MKE
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 3, 5,399 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:00 pm from SBM, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 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.