Beech 200 accident near Azusa, California, May 10, 1989
On May 10, 1989 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Beech 200, registered N39YV, was destroyed in an accident near Azusa, California. It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
IMPROPER IN-FLIGHT PLANNING/DECISION BY THE PILOT, WHICH RESULTED IN HAS INADVERTENT FLIGHT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC) AND SUBSEQUENT COLLISION WITH MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN. THE WEATHER AND TERRAIN CONDITIONS WERE CONSIDERED TO BE RELATED FACTORS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 10, 1989 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Azusa, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech 200 · all 200s on the register
- Registration
- N39YV · no longer on the register · serial BB-39
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
BEFORE THE FLT, THE PLTS OF 2 BEECH 200 ACFT EVALUATED WX RPRTS AT A FIXED BASE OPERATION & MADE A COMPUTER WX INQUIRY. THEY DEPARTED SANTA MONICA, CA, ON A POSITIONING FLT TO FARMINGTON, NM, WITHOUT FILING A FLT PLAN. WHILE EN ROUTE, THE LEAD ACFT WAS ABOUT 1 TO 3 MIN AHEAD OF THE 2ND ACFT. THE 2ND PLT RPRTD THEY WERE AT ABOUT 4500 FT MSL AS THEY NEARED MTNS & THE CLOUDS WERE ABOUT 1000 FT ABOVE. AS THEY CONTD EASTWARD IN A VALLEY, THE 2ND PLT HEARD THE LEAD PLT RPRT HE WAS 'GOING UP.' THIS WAS THE LAST KNOWN TRANSMISSION FROM THE LEAD ACFT. THE 2ND PLT CONTINUED HIS FLT IN VMC. TWO DAYS LATER, THE LEAD ACFT WAS FOUND, WHERE IT HAD CRASHED ABOUT 100 FT BELOW THE TOP OF A 7400 FT MTN RIDGE. IMPACT OCCURRED ON A HDG OF ABOUT 030 DEG. THE MTN RIDGE WAS ORIENTED ON HDGS OF 060 & 240 DEG.
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, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 11,500 hours in all; 125 in this make and model; 75 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 10,000 as pilot in command; 450 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,267 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, May 3, 1989; 35 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 15
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6A-41 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Mesa Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: SMO Santa Monica CA at 9:15 pm
- Destination: FMN Farmington NM
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: overcast; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.