Beech D18S accident near Dallas, Texas, February 26, 1982
On February 26, 1982 at about 4:00 am local time, a Beech D18S, registered N8517Z, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dallas, Texas (Dallas Airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 26, 1982 · about 4:00 am local time
- Place
- Dallas, Texas · Dallas Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech D18S · all D18Ss on the register
- Registration
- N8517Z · no longer on the register · serial A 352
- 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
DURING A NIGHT, ILS APPROACH, THE PLANE STRUCK A POWERLINE ABOUT TWO MILES SHORT OF THE RUNWAY AFTER THE PILOT WAS PROVIDED A LOW ALTITUDE ALERT. THE LEFT ENGINE LOST POWER AND WAS FEATHERED. THE PILOT FEARED POSSIBLE GEAR DAMAGE AND LEFT IT EXTENDED. UNABLE TO MAINTAIN ALTITUDE, THE PLANE CRASHED BEFORE REACHING THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT REPORTED ICE ACCUMULATING ON HIS WINDSHIELD DURING THE DESCENT, BUT STATED HE COULD SEE QUITE WELL THROUGH THE LEFT QUARTER. HE STATED HE WAS FLYING THE APPROACH WITH A GLIDE SLOPE INDICATION OF ONE DOT HIGH WHEN HE LEVELED OFF WITH AN ALTITUDE INDICATION OF ABOUT 800 FT MSL. BEFORE CRASHING, THE PILOT REPLIED TO AN ATC QUERY THAT HE WAS IN CONTACT WITH THE GROUND, HAD THE RUNWAY IN SIGHT, HAD ICE ON HIS WINDSHIELD, AND HIS GLIDESLOPE WAS NOT WORKING. A CHECK OF THE GLIDE SLOPE RECEIVER REVEALED IT WAS INOPERATIVE WITH A ONE DOT HIGH INDICATION. THE ALTIMETERS WERE CHECKED AND SHOWED ONLY A 70 FT DIFFERENCE. ELEVATION OF THE CRASH SITE WAS 596 FT MSL.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,284 hours in all; 240 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 9,051 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 12,005 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,750 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-985 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Austin TX at 8:55 pm
- Destination: Dallas TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 35R, 11,388 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 304° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 700 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 99°F (37°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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 N8517Z 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.