Beech K35 accident near Ridgefield, Connecticut, June 11, 1983
On June 11, 1983 at about 6:05 pm local time, a Beech K35, registered N9554R, was destroyed in an accident near Ridgefield, Connecticut. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were 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
- June 11, 1983 · about 6:05 pm local time
- Place
- Ridgefield, Connecticut
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech K35 · all K35s on the register
- Registration
- N9554R · no longer on the register · serial D6124
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF, SEVERAL WITNESSES HEARD UNUSUAL SOUNDS FROM THE ACFT. ONE STATED THAT HE HEARD A SPUTTERING NOISE & THE ENG STOPPED, THEN IT RESTARTED, BUT WAS NOT SMOOTH. THE OTHER 2 WITNESSES HEARD A BACKFIRING OR SPUTTERING NOISE. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT ENTERED A STEEP DESCENT & CRASHED. BEFORE THE PLANE CRASHED, THE PLT HAD TRANSMITTED A MAYDAY CALL & SAID THE ACFT WAS GOING DOWN. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF A MECHANICAL PROBLEM. EXCEPT THE LEFT FUEL CAP O-RING WAS BADLY CRACKED FROM AGE & THE TOP OF THE LEFT WING HAD SIGNS OF FUEL STREAMING (SYPHONING). PRIOR TO THIS FLT, THE ACFT HAD BEEN FLOWN FROM YOUNGSTOWN, OH TO WILKES-BARRE, PA, THEN ON TO DANBURY, CT. THE PLT HAD REPORTED THAT ON THAT TRIP, HE HAD SEEN FUEL STREAMING FROM THE LEFT WING, ALL THE WAY BACK, AND THAT HE WOULD SEE A MECHANIC ABOUT FIXING THE CAPS. THERE WAS NO RECORD THAT THE ACFT HAD BEEN REFUELED AT WILKES-BARRE OR DANBURY, PRIOR TO THIS FLT. ALSO, A MECHANIC HAD PREVIOUSLY ADVISED THE OWNER TO REPLACE THE O-RINGS.
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, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,852 hours in all; 38 in this make and model; 42 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 16,813 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, February 1, 1983
- Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470-C (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: DXR Danbury CT at 2:05 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:49 pm from POU, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.