Beech E-55 incident near Key West, Florida, March 31, 2007
On March 31, 2007 at about 2:38 pm local time, a Beech E-55, registered N25612, suffered minor damage in an incident near Key West, Florida (Key West Intl airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Failure of the nose landing gear drag brace due to overload during landing rollout for undetermined reasons. Contributing to the accident was the airplane had not been modified with an improved nose landing gear drag brace.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 31, 2007 · about 2:38 pm local time · cases in 2007
- Place
- Key West, Florida · Key West Intl · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech E-55 · all E-55s on the register
- Registration
- N25612 · registry record · serial TE-897
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot stated that when he extended the landing gear on final approach he received a green gear down light. During landing rollout the nose landing gear collapsed. Examination of the airplane after the incident by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors showed the nose landing gear torque link had failed, causing the nose landing gear to collapse. Metallurgical examination of the nose landing gear drag brace was performed at the National Transportation Safety Board Materials Laboratory. The examination showed the drag brace had fractured in the tubing; at a point just forward of the right attach point. The fracture faces displayed surfaces that were inclined at approximately 45-degrees to the axis of the separated portion of the tubing, consistent with an overload event. The incident airplane was manufactured in January 1973. A representative from Hawker-Beechcraft stated that beginning in model year 1978, an improved nose landing gear drag brace was incorporated into new production airplanes. Beech also issued service kit 35-4012-1 S, which allowed for upgrade of earlier model E-55 airplanes with the improved nose landing gear drag brace. The representative stated that pictures of the failed drag brace from the accident airplane shows it was not the improved drag brace. Maintenance personnel for the incident airplane owner stated that a review of airplane logbook records show no evidence that the drag brace had been changed in the life of the airplane and that the failed drag brace appeared to be the original supplied with the airplane from the factory.
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: 1,228 hours in all; 438 in this make and model; 6 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 1,027 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: January 1, 2007
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,320 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 2007; 13 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,300 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Continental I0-520-C (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Continental 10-520 CB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SRQ Sarasota FL at 1:34 pm
- Destination: EYW Key West FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 09, 4,801 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 2,800 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 pm from EYW, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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
- N25612 on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Beechcraft E-55 215 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Beechcraft 6 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental I0-520-C 4 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Engine: Continental 10-520 CB · as the NTSB recorded it
- Key West International · nearest airport
- Sarasota/Bradenton International · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Florida 6,103 since 1982 · 984 in the last ten years
- Florida 21,711 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/MIA07IA080.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.