Cessna 208B accident near Lanai, Hawaii, March 6, 1990
On March 6, 1990 at about 10:45 pm local time, a Cessna 208B, registered N851FE, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lanai, Hawaii (Lanai airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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 PILOT'S MISJUDGEMENT OF THE GLIDE PATH ANGLE WHILE EXECUTING A FORCED LANDING AT THE LANAI AIRPORT. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO PROPERLY SECURE THE OIL FILTER CAP PRIOR TO DEPARTURE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 6, 1990 · about 10:45 pm local time · cases in 1990
- Place
- Lanai, Hawaii · Lanai · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 208B · all 208Bs on the register
- Registration
- N851FE · registry record · serial 208B0166
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT SAID THAT HE SERVICED THE OIL QUATITY PRIOR TO DEPARTURE. THE AIRCRAFT WAS IN LEVEL CRUISE ABOUT EIGHT MILES FROM THE AIRPORT WHEN THE PILOT SAW THE PIL PRESSURE FLUCTUATING, THEN BEGIN DECREASING, WITH A CORRESPONDING DECREASE IN ENGINE TORQUE OUTPUT. THE PILOT FOLLOWED THE CHECKLIST AND SHUT DOWN THE ENGINE WHEN THE AIRCRAFT WAS OVER THE AIRPORT. THE PILOT SET UP A SPIRAL OVER THE AIRPORT TO LOSE ALTITUDE IN PREPARATION FOR A POWER OFF FORCED LANDING. THE PILOT SAID HE LET THE AIRCRAFT GET TOO LOW WHILE LINING UP FOR THE RUNWAY AND LANDED SHORT IN A FIELD. FAA INSPECTORS EXAMINED THE AIRCRAFT AND THE ENGINE AT THE SITE AND FOUND OIL COVERING THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE LOWER FUSELAGE. THE OIL FILLER CAP WAS FOUND LOOSE IN THE FILLER NECK. NO EVIDENCE OF OIL LEAKAGE WAS NOTED TO ANY PART OF THE ENGINE OR OIL LINES. THE 'O' RINGS IN THE OIL FILLER NECK WERE FOUND IN PLACE AND THE FILLER NECK WAS FOUND ATTACHED TO THE ENGINE WITH THE CORRECT TORQUE.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,961 hours in all; 798 in this make and model; 201 in the last 90 days; 64 in the last 30 days; 2,770 as pilot in command; 1,133 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 580 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, January 15, 1990; 80 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W PT-6-A114 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Corporate Air
The flight
- Departed from: PHNL Honolulu HI at 10:08 pm
- Destination: KOA Kona HI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 3, 5,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 10 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft; scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N851FE on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 208 Caravan 1,018 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,677 aircraft on the register
- Engine: P&W PT-6-A114 12 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Lanai Airport · nearest airport
- Daniel K Inouye International · departed from
- Ellison Onizuka Kona International AT Keahole · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Hawaii 524 since 1982 · 86 in the last ten years
- Hawaii 650 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/LAX90LA110.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.