Beech BE-200 accident near Piqua, Ohio, August 24, 2001
On August 24, 2001 at about 10:40 am local time, a Beech BE-200, registered N18260, was destroyed in an accident near Piqua, Ohio (Piqua airport). It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper decision to attempt a visual landing under instrument meteorological conditions and his failure to maintain adequate altitude/clearance, which resulted in an in-flight collision with trees. A factor in this accident was the ground fog.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 24, 2001 · about 10:40 am local time
- Place
- Piqua, Ohio · Piqua · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech BE-200
- Registration
- N18260 · registry record · serial BB-900
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airline transport rated pilot was attempting to land under visual flight rules for a scheduled passenger pick-up and subsequent charter flight. The pilot was communicating with a pilot at the airport, who was utilizing a hand held radio. The accident pilot reported he was not able to see the runway lights due to ground fog and continued to circle the airport for about 20 minutes. The pilot on the ground stated the airplane appeared to be about 1,500 feet above the ground when it circled, and then entered a downwind for runway 26. He was not able to hear or see the airplane as it flew away from the airport. He then began to hear the airplane during its final approach. The airplane's engines sounded normal. He then heard a "terrible sound of impact," followed by silence. When he arrived at the accident site, the airplane was fully engulfed in flames. The airplane impacted trees about 80-feet tall, located about 2,000 feet from, and on a 240 degree course to the approach end of runway 26. Several freshly broken tree limbs and trunks, up to 15-inches in diameter, were observed strewn along a debris path, which measured 370 feet. Examination of the wreckage did not reveal any pre-impact malfunctions. The weather reported at an airport about 19 miles south-southeast of the accident site, included a visibility of 1 3/4 miles, in mist, with clear skies and a temperature and dew point of 17 degrees Celsius. Witnesses in the area of the accident site generally described conditions of "thick fog" and a resident who lived across from the accident site stated visibility was "near zero" and he could barely see across the road.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,100 hours in all; 2,400 in this make and model; 175 in the last 90 days; 6,900 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: July 7, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,821 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, July 27, 2001
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 11
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-42 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-42 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: I19 Dayton OH
- Destination: I17 Piqua OH
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 3,997 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 360° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 1.8 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 10:45 am from DAY, 19 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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number NYC01FA215.