Beech M35 accident near Los Alamos, New Mexico, June 23, 2000
On June 23, 2000 at about 6:10 pm local time, a Beech M35, registered N9304Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Los Alamos, New Mexico (Los Alamos airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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
The pilot's misjudgment of distance/speed resulting in an overrun and subsequent collision with a blast fence. Contributing factors were high density altitude, a tailwind, and the blast fence.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 23, 2000 · about 6:10 pm local time
- Place
- Los Alamos, New Mexico · Los Alamos · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech M35 · all M35s on the register
- Registration
- N9304Y · no longer on the register · serial D-6527
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was completing a flight review and performing a full stop landing at the airport where the aircraft was based. The airport altitude was 7,171 feet msl, the temperature was 72 degrees Fahrenheit, and the density altitude was computed to be 9,300 feet. The wind was a 4 knot tailwind component. Thus, the ground speed was calculated to be 31 knots above the indicated airspeed and the pilot said he landed 'long and fast.' The aircraft went off the end of the runway during landing roll and struck the blast fence. The collision destroyed the aircraft; however, the private pilot and flight instructor check pilot were not injured.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,005 hours in all; 1,500 in this make and model; 13 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 3,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,740 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 24, 2000; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,970 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470-C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LAM at 5:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 5,550 ft by 130 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:10 pm from LAM, 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.
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.