Douglas DC-3C accident near El Paso, Texas, April 6, 1986
On April 6, 1986, a Douglas DC-3C, registered N25CE, was substantially damaged in an accident near El Paso, Texas (El Paso airport). 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
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
- April 6, 1986
- Place
- El Paso, Texas · El Paso · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Douglas DC-3C · all DC-3Cs on the register
- Registration
- N25CE · registry record · serial 12476
- 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
THE PILOT REPORTED THAT HE WAS LEVELING OFF FROM CLIMB WHEN HE EXPERIENCED A PROP RUNAWAY. HE OBSERVED OIL STREAMING FROM THE LEFT ENGINE, BUT COULD NOT FEATHER. UNABLE TO MAINTAIN ALTITUDE WITH A WINDMILLING PROP, HE PERFORMED A GEAR UP EMERGENCY LANDING IN THE DESERT. TEARDOWNS WERE PERFORMED, BUT THE EVIDENCE HAD BEEN TAMPERED WITH. THE ORIGIN OF THE MALFUNCTION WAS NOT DISCOVERED. THE OPERATOR SUBSEQUENTLY SURRENDERED HIS PART 121 CERTIFICATE.
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 engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,160 hours in all; 1,200 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 2,900 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 21,455 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, April 4, 1986; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 26,900 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-1830-94 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ELP El Paso TX
- Destination: ABQ Albuquerque NM
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:31 am from ELP, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 |
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.