Beech T-34 accident near Haskell, Oklahoma, June 24, 1989
On June 24, 1989 at about 8:35 pm local time, a Beech T-34, registered N34CJ, was destroyed in an accident near Haskell, Oklahoma (Haskell airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE AIRSPEED, WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADVERTENT STALL. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: A LEAK IN THE PITOT SYSTEM, FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO OBTAIN ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE/INSPECTION OF THE PITOT SYSTEM, AND HIS LACK OF FAMILIARITY WITH THE AIRCRAFT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 24, 1989 · about 8:35 pm local time
- Place
- Haskell, Oklahoma · Haskell · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech T-34 · all T-34s on the register
- Registration
- N34CJ · no longer on the register · serial CG-211
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRSPEED INDCR WAS MALFUNCTIONING ON A PREVIOUS FLT. BFR TAKING OFF AGAIN, THE PLT WAS SEEN TO DISASSEMBLE THE PITOTTUBE AS IF THE REMOVE FOREIGN MATTER. ON THE NEXT FLT, HE BGN A HI SPD/LOW PASS OVR RWY 35. AT ABT MIDFIELD, THE ACFT ENTERED A CLIMB TO APRX 800 TO 1000 FT AGL. NR THE PEAK OF THE CLIMB, THERE WAS A REDUCTION OF PWR & THE ACFT MNVRD (TURNED LEFT, THEN RGT, AS IF TO ENTER A BASE TURN FOR RWY 17). THE LNDG GEAR WAS EXTDD AT ABT 300 TO 500 FT AGL, FLWD BY A TURN (SOUTH) TWD THE RWY. AFTER ABT 45 DEG OF TURN, THE ACFT ENTERED A STEEP DSCNT & CRASHED. AN EXAM REVEALED A RUBBER PITOT LINE, PN 35-324323, WAS DETERIORATED & LEAKED. NO OTR PREIMPACT PART FAILURE WAS FND. EXPERIMENTAL CATEGORYACFT WITH SVRL LIMITATIONS: FLTS RSTRD TO TX; EXHIBITION ONLY; PIC WAS REQUIRED TO HAVE AN INSTRUCTOR'S LOGBOOK ENDORSE-MENT OR LETTER OF AUTHORIZATION (LOA) TO OPER THE ACFT. NEITHER AN ENDORSEMENT NOR LOA WAS FND. PLT HAD ABT 1 HR IN T-34ACFT; CANNABINOIDS DETECTED IN PLT'S URINE, BUT NONE FND IN HIS BLOOD. ACFT WAS NOT EQUIPPED WITH STALL WARNING SYS.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 778 hours in all; 1 in this make and model; 653 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,550 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 3, 1989; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470-N (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 00K7 at 8:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 3,710 ft by 30 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 170° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 1,000 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:50 pm from TUL, 23 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.