Beech A-36 accident near Coyote, California, February 13, 1984
On February 13, 1984 at about 3:45 am local time, a Beech A-36, registered N67426, was destroyed in an accident near Coyote, California. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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
- February 13, 1984 · about 3:45 am local time
- Place
- Coyote, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Beech A-36 · all A-36s on the register
- Registration
- N67426 · registry record · serial E1663
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT CRASHED IN MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN DURING A NIGHT X-COUNTRY IN MARGINAL WEATHER. THE PLT MADE AN APPROACH TO SAN JOSE, CANCELLED HIS IFR FLT PLAN AND ADVISED HE WAS PROCEEDING TO HOLLISTER. A COMMON PRACTICE IN THE AREA IS TO FLY THE VALLEY, FOLLOWING THE HIGHWAY DURING PERIODS OF LOW CEILINGS, WHEN THE WEATHER IS BASICALLY VFR BETWEEN SAN JOSEAND HOLLISTER. THE PLT HAD BEEN ADVISED BY SAN JOSE TOWER THAT REID-HILLVIEW CONTROL ZONE WAS BELOW BASIC VFR MINIMUMS. INVESTIGATION DID NOT REVEAL ANY EVIDENCE OF PREIMPACT ACFT FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,250 hours in all; 605 in this make and model; 210 in the last 90 days; 3,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,840 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 30, 1983; 53 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-BB (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: San Benito Air Service
The flight
- Departed from: MOD Modesto CA at 3:15 am
- Destination: 307 Hollister CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,500 ft; scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:45 am from SJC, 13 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.