Beech D95A accident near Lancaster, California, January 31, 2003
On January 31, 2003 at about 3:37 am local time, a Beech D95A, registered N5639S, was destroyed in an accident near Lancaster, California (General Wm J Fox Airfield). It was an instructional flight 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
a loss of aircraft control due to the instructor pilot's incapacitation by seizure activity as a result of his undiagnosed cancer, and his use of a medication that can increase seizure risk.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 31, 2003 · about 3:37 am local time
- Place
- Lancaster, California · General Wm J Fox Airfield · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech D95A · all D95As on the register
- Registration
- N5639S · registry record · serial TD-658
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane collided with a hangar during a go-around. The flight crew entered the traffic pattern and completed one touch-and-go landing. The crew requested, and the controller cleared them, for a simulated single engine full stop landing on runway 24. The controller thought that the touch-and-go approach and landing was unremarkable and perfectly normal. On the single engine full stop approach, he thought that the airplane made a short approach with the wings rocking back and fourth. The airplane looked like it was low and could possibly land short of the runway. As the airplane approached the end of the runway, it began to veer to the left (from the flight crew's perspective). The controller said it appeared to be headed directly for the control tower as it continued to drift left. The airplane stayed low to the ground and the controller had the impression that the flight crew was attempting to climb. The wing lights were continuously rocking back and fourth as the airplane continued to drift left and it crossed the dirt infield and a taxiway while still airborne. The bank angle then increased sharply to the left, and the airplane disappeared behind some hangars. The controller estimated that the airplane was 1,500 feet from the approach end of the runway when he observed a fireball and alerted rescue crews. The instructor pilot's autopsy noted undiagnosed lung cancer that had metastasized to his brain. The brain showed evidence of severe swelling, with disruption of the normal brain structure. The instructor pilot had been prescribed a pain medication (tramadol), which was found in the instructor pilot's blood at a level consistent with regular use at least at the dose prescribed. The medication is known to increase the risk for seizures, particularly in patients with other potential seizure risks. The effects of the brain swelling and the medication likely produced seizure activity in the instructor which could have significantly interfered with the aircraft controls and made it difficult or impossible for the student to have adequately controlled the aircraft.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,000 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
Dual student
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 442 hours in all
- Last flight review: January 1, 2002
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,270 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 1, 2002
- Maximum gross weight: 4,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Lycoming IO-360-B1B (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Lycoming IO-360-B1B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: WJF Lancaster CA at 2:30 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 7,201 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 300° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.22 inHg
- Observation at 3:38 am from WJF
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.