Cessna 337E accident near Kahului, Hawaii, November 13, 1988
On November 13, 1988 at about 1:50 am local time, a Cessna 337E, registered N1259M, was destroyed in an accident near Kahului, Hawaii. It was a ferry flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 13, 1988 · about 1:50 am local time · cases in 1988
- Place
- Kahului, Hawaii · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 337E · all 337Es on the register
- Registration
- N1259M · registry record · serial 33701259
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Ferry flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT RPRTD THAT AFTER ABOUT 10 HRS ON AN OVERWATER FERRY FLT, HE NOTICED HIGH OIL TEMP & LOW OIL PRESSURE INDCNS FROMTHE REAR ENG. EVENTUALLY THE REAR ENG BEGAN RUNNING ROUGH, SO HE SHUT IT DOWN, FEATHERED ITS PROP AND 'INCREASED POWER ON THE FRONT ENGINE'. ABOUT 1 HR LATER, THE FRONT ENG BEGAN INDICATING A HIGH CYLINDER HEAD TEMP (CHT). HE REDUCED POWER (SOMEWHAT) ON THE FRONT ENG & RESTARTED THE REAR ENG. HOWEVER, AFTER ABOUT 10 MIN, THE REAR ENG BEGAN RUNNING SO ROUGH, HE SHUT DOWN & SECURED IT AGAIN. SUBSEQUENTLY, WHILE TALKING TO A COAST GUARD C-130 & GIVING A POSITION RPRT, THE FRONT ENG LOST POWER COMPLETELY. THE PLT REPORTED THERE WAS SUFFICIENT FUEL ABOARD AND THE FRONT ENG WAS RUNNING ON THE MN TANK. THE PLT ATMTD A RESTART, BUT WAS UNABLE TO GET EITHER ENG TO RUN. HE DITCHED THE ACFT IN THE OCEAN & WAS EVENTUALLY RESCUED. THE ACFT WAS NOT RECOVERED.
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: 1,400 hours in all; 20 in this make and model; 600 in the last 90 days; 200 in the last 30 days; 1,200 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,678 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 5,093 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-360-C (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Brents International
The flight
- Departed from: OAK Oakland CA at 9:35 pm
- Destination: HNL Honolulu HI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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.
Other NTSB records under N1259M the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N1259M on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 337 Skymaster 370 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,676 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental IO-360-C 14 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport · departed from
- Daniel K Inouye International · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Hawaii 524 since 1982 · 86 in the last ten years
- Hawaii 650 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N1259M 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/LAX89LA049.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.