Fairchild SA227AC incident near S. Lake Tahoe, California, January 29, 1988
On January 29, 1988 at about 8:27 pm local time, a Fairchild SA227AC, registered N368AE, was involved in an incident near S. Lake Tahoe, California (S. Lake Tahoe airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 16 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
CAPTAIN'S FAILURE TO FOLLOW FLIGHT MANUAL PROCEDURES IN THE OPERATION OF THE ANTI-ICE/DE-ICE SYSTEMS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 29, 1988 · about 8:27 pm local time
- Place
- S. Lake Tahoe, California · S. Lake Tahoe
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 16 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Fairchild SA227AC · all SA227ACs on the register
- Registration
- N368AE · no longer on the register · serial AC696
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING THE DESCENT FOR LANDING THE AIRCRAFT ENTERED INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS AND ACCUMLUATED A SLIGHT COAT OF ICE. THE ENGINE ANTI-ICE/DE-ICE HEATERS WERE NOT ON THROUGHOUT THE DESCENT AND LANDING. ON TOUCHDOWN BOTH ENGINES FLAMED OUT AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS TOWED TO THE TERMINAL.
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: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,650 hours in all; 1,400 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 242 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme; 56 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 14,500 lb
- Seats: 21
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Airesearch TPE331-11U (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SFO San Francisco CA at 7:35 pm
- Destination: TVL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 18, 8,544 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,600 ft; not recorded at 2,600 ft
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:54 pm from TVL
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 14 |
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.