Beech E90 incident near Clovis, New Mexico, January 18, 1999
On January 18, 1999 at about 7:10 pm local time, a Beech E90, registered N16NM, was involved in an incident near Clovis, New Mexico. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Total failure of the elevator control cable due to a short circuit from chafing against an adjoining electrical cable, and failure of maintenance personnel to detect the problem during an AAIP phase inspection.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 18, 1999 · about 7:10 pm local time
- Place
- Clovis, New Mexico
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech E90 · all E90s on the register
- Registration
- N16NM · registry record · serial LW-62
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The air ambulance flight was transporting a male infant in an incubator to Clovis, New Mexico. During the descent into Clovis, the control yoke moved to the full forward position. The pilot eased back on the yoke and the nose pitched up. The pilot was able to maintain control by the use of power and elevator trim, and elected to return to Albuquerque, where an uneventful landing was made. Postincident examination disclosed a drooping wire bundle beneath the pilot's seat, at F.S. 122. The insulation around the H16A10 wire (copilot's windshield heat) had chafed against the elevator down cable (part number 50-524439-31), causing a short circuit. Although the pilot did not detect the odor of smoke, the elevator cable was burnt through and had separated. No circuit breakers were opened nor were any fuses blown.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,300 hours in all; 65 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 4,010 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,468 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, October 9, 1998; 69 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10,100 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6A-28 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ABQ Albuquerque NM at 6:12 pm
- Destination: CVN NM
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 21 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 23°F (-5°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:15 pm from CVN, 50 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| 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.
Other NTSB records under N16NM the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.