Beech 58P accident near Beeville, Texas, October 26, 1984
On October 26, 1984 at about 5:15 am local time, a Beech 58P, registered N187DA, was destroyed in an accident near Beeville, Texas. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed, 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. 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
- October 26, 1984 · about 5:15 am local time
- Place
- Beeville, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed, 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech 58P · all 58Ps on the register
- Registration
- N187DA · no longer on the register · serial TJ-7
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHEN THE PLT CALLED THE FSS AT 1426 EDT & FILED AN IFR FLT PLAN, THE FSS PERSON BEGAN PROVIDING A WX BRIEFING. THE PLT INTERRUPTED THE WX BRIEFING & SAID HE WOULD CHECK BACK LATER. HE CALLED BACK AT 2016 EDT, BUT TALKED TO ANOTHER BRIEFER & ONLY ASKED FOR THUNDERSTORM INFO & THE HOUSTON TERMINAL FORCAST. AT THAT TIME, BEEVILLE MUNI ARPT, HIS DESTINATION, WAS NOTAMED CLOSED. THE PLT TOOK OFF AT 2044 CDT AND DID NOT ASK FOR NOTAM INFO, EITHER BEFORE DEPARTING OR WHILE EN ROUTE. DURING ARRIVAL, THE PLT WAS CLEARED FOR AN APCH TO BEEVILLE AT 2355 CDT. HOWEVER, THE LIGHTS WERE OUT & THE PLT COULD NOT SEE THE ARPT. HE THEN ELECTED TO DIVERT TO NAS CHASE FIELD, BUT IT TOO WAS CLOSE & ITS LIGHTS WERE OUT. BY THIS TIME, THE FUEL LEVEL WAS LOW & THE PLT ELECTED TO MAKE A CONTROLLED OFF-ARPT LANDING. HE PICKED A FIELD, BUT DURING THE NIGHT LANDING, THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH A FILE OF RAILROAD TIES & A SMALL TREE. THE ACFT HAD BEEN AIRBORNE APRX 4-1/2 HRS. WHEN HE FILED A FLT PLAN, HE REPORTED 5 HRS OF FUEL ON BOARD.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,583 hours in all; 450 in this make and model; 170 in the last 90 days; 2,450 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,165 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 1, 1983; 120 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,100 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-L (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: CHA Chattanooga TN at 11:44 pm
- Destination: 3R0 Beeville TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 060° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 400 ft; not recorded at 400 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Observation at 4:50 am from BEA, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 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.
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.