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Accidents · NTSB LAX83LA406 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Beech F33A accident near San Carlos, California, August 24, 1983

On August 24, 1983, a Beech F33A, registered N3737L, was substantially damaged in an accident near San Carlos, California (San Carlos airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
August 24, 1983 · cases in 1983
Place
San Carlos, California · San Carlos · cases near this airport · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Beech F33A · all F33As on the register
Registration
N3737L · registry record · serial CE929
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

THE PLT STATED THAT DURING THE FINAL APPROACH SEQUENCE HE ENCOUNTERED A GUST OF WIND FOLLOWED BY IMMEDIATE SINKING OF THE ACFT, CAUSING THE ACFT TO BOUNCE. DURING THE RECOVERY FROM THE BOUNCED LANDING, THE NOSE GEAR STRUCK THE RWY & COLLAPSED.

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: private
  • Ratings: single-engine land
  • Flight time: 412 hours in all; 40 in this make and model; 46 in the last 90 days; 115 as pilot in command
  • Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: left

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 306 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, July 1, 1983; 20 hours since
  • Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
  • Seats: 5
  • Landing gear: retractable
  • Engine: Continental IO-520-BB (piston); 0 hours total

The flight

  • Departed from: PAO Palo Alto CA at 11:45 pm
  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 30, 2,600 ft by 75 ft

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Wind: from 250° at 11 knots
  • Visibility: 30 statute miles
  • Sky: scat
  • Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
  • Altimeter: 29.00 inHg

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew1

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.

Connections how this case links to the rest of the register

Aircraft
Place
Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/LAX83LA406.json.

The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.

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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.