Swearingen SA226TC accident near Hot Springs, Arkansas, March 23, 1985
On March 23, 1985 at about 4:45 pm local time, a Swearingen SA226TC, registered N508SS, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hot Springs, Arkansas (Hot Spring Mem airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 9 people were 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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 23, 1985 · about 4:45 pm local time
- Place
- Hot Springs, Arkansas · Hot Spring Mem · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 9 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Swearingen SA226TC · all SA226TCs on the register
- Registration
- N508SS · no longer on the register · serial 5C376
- 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 FIRST OFFICER WAS MAKING THE LANDING AND THE ACFT BOUNCED DURING TOUCHDOWN. THE CAPTAIN'S RIGHT HAND, WHICH HAD BEENNEAR THE FLOOR TO THE RIGHT OF HIS SEAT, BUMPED THE LANDING GEAR SELECTOR TO THE UP POSITION AS THE CAPTAIN REACHED FOR THE YOKE. THE AIRCRAFT THEN LANDED WITH THE GEAR RETRACTED. ALTHOUGH THE LANDING GEAR SELECTOR HANDLE LATCH MECHANISM OPERATED AS DESIGNED, TESTS SHOWED THE MECHANISM OFFERED LITTLE RESISTANCE TO INADVERTENT MOVEMENT TO THE UP POSITION.
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: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,032 hours in all; 1,280 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,717 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, March 16, 1985; 45 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 19
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE331 SERIES (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Air Midwest Skyways, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: LIT Little Rock AR
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 23, 6,600 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 310° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 5:00 pm from HOT
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 7 |
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.