Piper PA-32-300 accident near Bentonville, Arkansas, September 11, 1989
On September 11, 1989 at about 1:52 pm local time, a Piper PA-32-300, registered N8995N, was destroyed in an accident near Bentonville, Arkansas (Springdale Muni airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A LOOSE OIL LINE THAT BECAME DISCONNECTED, WHEN MAINTENANCE/INSPECTION OF THE AIRCRAFT HAD NOT BEEN COMPLETED, WHICH RESULTED IN LOSS OF ENGINE OIL AND SUBSEQUENT FAILURE OF THE CONNECTING ROD FROM LACK OF LUBRICATION. A FACTOR RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WAS: INADEQUATE SURVEILLANCE OF THE OPERATION BY COMPANY/MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 11, 1989 · about 1:52 pm local time
- Place
- Bentonville, Arkansas · Springdale Muni
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-300 · all PA-32-300s on the register
- Registration
- N8995N · no longer on the register · serial 32-40878
- Damage
- Destroyed
- 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 USING A COMPANY ACFT THAT HAD BEEN SVCD WITH NEW FLEX OIL HOSES, BUT THE COMPANY MECHANIC HAD NOT COMPLETED THE INSTALLATION BEFORE LEAVING WORK FOR THE DAY. HE (THE MECHANIC) HAD DEFERRED COMPLETION OF THE WORK UNTIL THE FLWG MONDAY. RPRTDLY, A LEAK CHK OF THE OIL HOSES WAS ACCOMPLISHED BY THE PLT, BUT A LOG OF THIS WAS NOT ENTERED IN THE MAINT RECORD BEFORE THE FLT. DRG AN ILS LOC APCH, THE PLT RPRTD A LOSS OF OIL PRESSURE. SUBSEQUENTLY, A CONNECTING ROD IN THE ENG FAILED FM LACK OF LUBRICATION & THE ACFT CRASHED INTO TREES DRG AN EMERG LNDG. AN INSPN OF THE ACFT REVEALED A DISCONNECTED OIL HOSE BETWEEN 2 OIL COOLERS. THE HOSE HAD VIBRATED FREE FM A FITTING & OIL HAD BEEN PUMPED OVERBOARD. THE OTR OIL HOSES WERE STILL SECURELY FASTENED.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,747 hours in all; 130 in this make and model; 1,618 as pilot in command; 797 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,258 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 14, 1989; 50 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: BVO Bartlesville OK at 12:51 pm
- Destination: ASG Springdale AR
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 18, 5,302 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 700 ft; not recorded at 700 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 pm from FYV, 26 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.
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.