Smith, Ted Aerostar 600 AEROSTAR incident near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 25, 1983
On January 25, 1983 at about 4:29 am local time, a Smith, Ted Aerostar 600 AEROSTAR, registered N9759Q, suffered minor damage in an incident near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Phila. Int'L. airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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 incident. 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
- January 25, 1983 · about 4:29 am local time
- Place
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania · Phila. Int'L. · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Smith, Ted Aerostar 600 AEROSTAR 600 AEROST
- Registration
- N9759Q · no longer on the register · serial 61P-01050
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT VEERED OFF THE RUNWAY DURING LANDING. THE WEATHER WAS VMC AT THE TIME. WHEN THE LANDING GEAR WAS LOWERED FOR LANDING NO DISCREPANCIES WERE NOTED BY THE PILOT PRIOR TO TOUCHDOWN. DURING TOUCHDOWN THE AIRCRAFT VEERED TO THE LEFT. THE PILOT TOOK CORRECTIVE ACTION TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL. WHEN THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED THE RUNWAY. THE LEFT MAIN GEAR SCISSORS HAD FAILED ABOVE THE HINGE BOLT AS A RESULT OF OVERLOAD.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,210 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 240 in the last 90 days; 3,050 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 480 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,500 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-S1A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TEB Teterboro NJ at 4:00 am
- Destination: PHL Philadelphia PA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 17, 5,460 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 230° at 9 knots
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 36°F (2°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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 N9759Q 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.