Cessna 320B accident near Bermuda Dunes, California, July 25, 1987
On July 25, 1987 at about 1:59 am local time, a Cessna 320B, registered N44RM, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bermuda Dunes, California (Bermuda Dunes airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were 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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 25, 1987 · about 1:59 am local time
- Place
- Bermuda Dunes, California · Bermuda Dunes · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 320B · all 320Bs on the register
- Registration
- N44RM · registry record · serial 320B0051
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DRG A LANDING, THE LEFT MAIN GEAR HIT A RAISED LIP AT THE APCH END OF THE RWY & FAILED. THE PLT HELD THE LEFT WING OFF THE RWY BY USING AILERON UNTIL THE ACFT SLOWED, THEN THE ACFT DRIFTED OFF THE LEFT SIDE. THE RWY LIP HAD BEEN CREATED BY CONSTRUCTION ON THE OVERRUN. A NOTAM HAD BEEN PUBLISHED CONCERNING THE CONSTRUCTION; HOWEVER, NO RECORD WAS FOUND TO INDICATE THE PLT HAD RECEIVED A WX BRIEFING OR HAD CHECKED THE NOTAMS.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,510 hours in all; 909 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 2,510 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,526 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 23, 1986; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,200 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-470-B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SMO Santa Monica CA at 6:00 pm
- Destination: UDD
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 4,030 ft by 60 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:45 pm from PSP
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| 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.