Beech D55 accident near Gardner, Kansas, May 12, 1983
On May 12, 1983 at about 10:10 am local time, a Beech D55, registered N725M, was substantially damaged in an accident near Gardner, Kansas (Johnson CO. Industrial airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 12, 1983 · about 10:10 am local time
- Place
- Gardner, Kansas · Johnson CO. Industrial · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech D55 · all D55s on the register
- Registration
- N725M · registry record · serial TE-674
- 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 PLT WAS CLEARED FOR AN ILS RWY 35 APPROACH & GIVEN THE KANSAS CITY DOWNTOWN ARPT (23 MI NE) WX AS 900 FT BROKEN & 6 MI VISIBILITY. THE TOWER WAS CLOSED & THE CONTROL ZONE WAS NOT IN EFFECT RAISING MINIMUMS. THE PLT STATED HIS ILS GLIDE SLOPE INDICATION WAS ERRATIC AT THE OUTER MARKER SO HE ELECTED TO CONTINUE A STRAIGHT-IN LOCALIZER ONLY APPROACH. HE SAID HE DESCENDED TO MDA OF 1400 FT (335 FT AGL) BUT THE ACFT WAS STILL IN CLOUDS. HE SAID AS HE WAS CHECKING VHF CONTROL HEAD TO INSURE PROPER FREQ SETTING FOR ACTIVATING THE APPROACH LIGHTS, THE ACFT STRUCK THE GROUND. INITIAL IMPACT WAS 1 MI SOUTH OF THE APCH END OF RWY 35 & ABOUT 100 YDS LEFT OF THE INBOUND ILS LOCALIZER COURSE. THE MDA IS INCREASED 100 FT WHEN THE CONTROL ZONE IS NOT IN EFFECT. NO MALFUNCTIONS OF THE ACFT'S ILS RECEIVERS OR #1 OBS WAS FOUND. A FLT INSPECTION OF THE ILS WAS SATISFACTORY. IN ADDITION TO 7 HOURS OF DUTY TIME ASSOCIATED WITH THE FLT, THE PLT HAD WORKED A NORMAL DUTY DAY ON 5/11 INVOLVING MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS & HAD RESTED 3-4 HRS PRIOR TO THE FLT.
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: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 13,428 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 277 in the last 90 days; 13,328 as pilot in command; 11 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,935 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 11, 1983; 5 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,300 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-C3 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SLN Salina KS at 9:10 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 35, 7,339 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 180° at 6 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 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 N725M the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.