Aero Commander 500B accident near Hays, Kansas, September 16, 1988
On September 16, 1988 at about 12:00 pm local time, a Aero Commander 500B, registered N1189Z, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hays, Kansas (Hays airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
OPERATION ATTEMPTED WITH KNOWN DEFICIENCIES IN EQUIPMENT, AND FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL. A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR WAS: THE PILOT'S USE OF AN IMPROPER STARTING PROCEDURE & THE FENCE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 16, 1988 · about 12:00 pm local time
- Place
- Hays, Kansas · Hays · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aero Commander 500B · all 500Bs on the register
- Registration
- N1189Z · no longer on the register · serial 1559-199
- 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
ABOUT 10 MIN AFTER LANDING, DRG A CARGO OPN, THE PLT WAS PREPARING FOR THE NEXT LEG OF THE FLT, BUT WAS UNABLE TO MAKE A NORMAL START OF THE RGT ENG. HE ATTEMPTED TO START (AIR START) THE ENG BY WINDMILLING THE PROP ON A TAKEOFF TYPE OF RUN. HOWEVER, DRG THE ATTEMPT, HE LOST CONTROL OF THE ACFT & IT VEERED OFF THE RWY, CROSSED A TWY & WENT THRU A BOUNDRY FENCE BEFORE STOPPING. IT CAME TO REST, 160 DEG FROM THE RWY HDG. NO PRE-ACDNT PART FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,967 hours in all; 2,328 in this make and model; 65 in the last 90 days; 23 in the last 30 days; 3,806 as pilot in command; 90 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,862 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, September 9, 1988
- Maximum gross weight: 6,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-E1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HYS at 11:07 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 34, 6,300 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 220° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:50 am from RSL, 25 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.
Other NTSB records under N1189Z 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.