Beech V35B accident near Sullivan, Missouri, October 15, 1985
On October 15, 1985 at about 8:15 pm local time, a Beech V35B, registered N18316, was destroyed in an accident near Sullivan, Missouri. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. 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
- October 15, 1985 · about 8:15 pm local time
- Place
- Sullivan, Missouri · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech V35B · all V35Bs on the register
- Registration
- N18316 · no longer on the register · serial D10040
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS OBSERVED GOING FROM LEVEL FLT TO STRAIGHT UP BEFORE STALLING, TURNING OVER AND SPIRALING STRAIGHT DOWN, AT FULL THROTTLE, TOWARD THE GROUND. IMPACT MARKS INDICATED A NEAR VERTICAL DESCENT WITH INITIAL IMPACT ON THE NOSE OF ACFT. IMPACT WAS IN A WOODED AREA BUT THERE WAS NO IMPACT DAMAGE TO TREE LIMBS OR TREE TRUNKS. THE ACFT EXPLODED ON GROUND IMPACT, THEN BURNED.
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
- Flight time: 4,700 hours in all; 30 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 6, 1985
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-BA (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: K39 St. Clair MO at 7:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:49 pm from SUS, 37 miles away
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.
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.