Beech C90A incident near Emporia, Kansas, September 22, 2007
On September 22, 2007 at about 5:15 am local time, a Beech C90A, registered N871KS, was involved in an incident near Emporia, Kansas. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 8 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The improper installation of the right elevator trim tab attachment hardware by maintenance personnel which resulted in excessive wear, fatigue, and the failure of the push-pull tube.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 22, 2007 · about 5:15 am local time
- Place
- Emporia, Kansas · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 8 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech C90A · all C90As on the register
- Registration
- N871KS · no longer on the register · serial LJ-1277
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While in cruise flight at 12,000 feet mean sea level, the airplane suddenly began "shuddering with a severe high frequency vibration." The pilot stated that the "vibration was in the entire airframe, not specifically the flight controls, so I had no clue where it was coming from." The pilot reduced the power on the left engine; however, the vibration continued. The pilot reduced the power on the right engine, and the vibration stopped. The pilot then shutdown and secured the right engine. Within a couple minutes of securing the right engine, the vibration "returned just as bad as before." The pilot then elected to divert to a nearby airport. The pilot lowered the landing gear during the approach, and the vibration stopped again. The airplane landed uneventfully. During a post flight inspection, the pilot observed the right elevator trim tab push rod was broken. The clevis which connected to the trim tab surface was "pinched due to an overtorqued bolt and nut." Metallurgical examination of the broken rod revealed a fatigue crack that propagated through at least 95 percent of the thread cross section. Maintenance records revealed the right elevator trim tab push-pull tube bolts and bushings were removed and replaced. At the time of the incident, the airframe had accumulated 101.5 flight hours since the inspection, and no additional maintenance to the right elevator trim system was noted in the maintenance records.
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; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 9,546 hours in all; 999 in this make and model; 65 in the last 90 days; 33 in the last 30 days; 8,494 as pilot in command; 3,264 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 1, 2007
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 883 hours in all; 8 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 479 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: December 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,688 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 1, 2007; 101.5 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10,100 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-21 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TUL Tulsa OK at 3:45 am
- Destination: MHK Manhattan KS
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 8,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 6 |
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.