Cessna 340 accident near Odessa, Texas, December 14, 1984
On December 14, 1984 at about 7:14 pm local time, a Cessna 340, registered N69477, was substantially damaged in an accident near Odessa, Texas (Schlemeyer airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were 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
- December 14, 1984 · about 7:14 pm local time
- Place
- Odessa, Texas · Schlemeyer · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 340 · all 340s on the register
- Registration
- N69477 · no longer on the register · serial 340-0322
- 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
AN EXPERIENCED PROFESSIONAL PILOT ENCOUNTERED FORECAST ICING CONDITIONS ON APPROACH THAT OBSCURRED FORWARD VISIBILITY. ON GO-AROUND, ANTI-ICING EQUIPMENT CLEARED SMALL AREA OF WINDSHIELD, PILOT DECIDED TO LAND. HE FAILED TO MAINTAIN SUFFICIENT AIRSPEED TO COMPENSATE FOR ICE ON WINGS & STALLED IN THE LANDING FLARE FROM AND ALT OF APRX 15' AGL. THE HARD LANDING RESULTED IN STRUCTURAL DAMAGE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 11,476 hours in all; 123 in this make and model; 155 in the last 90 days; 11,476 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,027 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 18, 1984; 83 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,975 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520-K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ELP El Paso TX
- Destination: E02 Odessa TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 11, 5,000 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:24 pm from MAF, 9 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.