Beech C24R accident near Tulsa, Oklahoma, December 29, 1992
On December 29, 1992 at about 2:30 am local time, a Beech C24R, registered N3809Q, was destroyed in an accident near Tulsa, Oklahoma (Tulsa Intl. airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT'S DISREGARD OF AND DESCENT BELOW THE PUBLISHED DECISION HEIGHT. FACTORS WERE HIS FAILURE TO MAINTAIN PROPER GLIDE PATH AND LOCALIZER ALIGNMENT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 29, 1992 · about 2:30 am local time
- Place
- Tulsa, Oklahoma · Tulsa Intl. · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech C24R · all C24Rs on the register
- Registration
- N3809Q · no longer on the register · serial MC-748
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT WAS EXECUTING AN ILS APPROACH IN DARK NIGHT IMC, WHEN THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED TREES AT THE 50 FOOT AGL LEVEL, ABOUT 150 FEET BELOW THE DECISION HEIGHT. THE AIRPLANE SUBSEQUENTLY IMPACTED THE GROUND AND BURNED. THE TREES WERE ABOUT 1/2 MILE SHORT OF AND 1/2 MILE LEFT OF THE EXTENDED CENTERLINE OF THE LANDING RUNWAY WHICH WAS NOT EQUIPPED WITH AN APPROACH LIGHTING SYSTEM. A PARALLEL RUNWAY, WHICH EXTENDED OUT 1,000 FEET BEYOND THE LANDING RUNWAY WAS EQUIPPED WITH AN ILS AND MEDIUM INTENSITY APPROACH LIGHTING SYSTEM, SEQUENCED FLASHING LIGHTS AND RUNWAY CENTERLINE LIGHTS. THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED THE TREES ABOUT MIDWAY BETWEEN THE TWO RUNWAYS, ON A HEADING TOWARD THE SECOND RUNWAY.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 391 hours in all; 41 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 339 as pilot in command; 100 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,900 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 4, 1992; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,750 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1B6 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: SGF Springfield MO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 18, 6,101 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 160° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 200 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:22 am from TUL, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.