Beech 95 accident near Monterey, California, September 9, 1987
On September 9, 1987, a Beech 95, registered N845B, was destroyed in an accident near Monterey, California (Monterey Peninsula airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. 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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 9, 1987
- Place
- Monterey, California · Monterey Peninsula · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 95 · all 95s on the register
- Registration
- N845B · no longer on the register · serial TD-73
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE COML PLT WAS RCVG MULT-ENG DUAL INSTRN IN A BEECH 95. AFTER TKOF, THE AIRCREW BEGAN PRACTICING INST APCHS. AFTER MAKING AN ILS RWY 10 APCH TO ENTER LEFT TRAFFIC FOR RWY 28, THE FLT WAS CLRD ONTO A SOUTH DOWNWIND TO BE SEQUENCED TO FOLLOW A PSA BAE-146. WHEN THE BEECH 95 CREW RPRTD THE BAE-146 WAS IN SIGHT, THEY WERE CLRD TO FOLLOW IT. A WITNESS, WHO WAS WATCHING THE BAE-146 LAND, STATED THAT WHEN HIS ATTENTION WAS FOCUSED ON THE PLANE (BEECH 95) SOME DISTANCE BEHIND THE COMMERCIAL PLANE (BAE-146), IT WAS IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN DSCNT TOWARD THE GND & IN A RGT SPIN. THE BEECH 95 CRASHED IN APRX A 125 DEG NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND. HOWEVER, THE ACFT WAS FND CONFIGURED FOR A PSBL SIMULATED ENG-OUT APCH; I.E., THE RUDDER TRIM TAB & INDICATOR WERE FND WITH ABT 20 TO 22 DEG DEFLECTION, THE LEFT & RGT TACH INDICATED 1900 & 2700 RPM, RESPECTIVELY, & THE FLAP & FLAP ACTUATORS WERE FND IN A RETRACTED PSN. THE IN-FLT SEPN BTW THE BEECH 95 & BAE-146 WAS NOT DETERMINED. TWR PSNL DIDN'T PROVIDE A WAKE TURBC ADZY.
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; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,759 hours in all; 131 in this make and model; 246 in the last 90 days; 69 in the last 30 days; 4,158 as pilot in command; 1,854 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,884 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 20, 1987; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Monterey Navy Flying Club
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 28, 6,597 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| 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.