Beech BONANZA F33A accident near Tarentum, Pennsylvania, May 12, 1984
On May 12, 1984 at about 7:45 pm local time, a Beech BONANZA F33A, registered N4463S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tarentum, Pennsylvania (West Penn airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 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
- May 12, 1984 · about 7:45 pm local time
- Place
- Tarentum, Pennsylvania · West Penn · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech BONANZA F33A BONANZA F3
- Registration
- N4463S · registry record · serial CE-580
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
PLT MADE LNDG APCH TO RWY 02 AT 95 MPH, FLAPS ONE-THIRD DOWN AND RT WING DOWN FOR WIND COMPENSATION. PLT STATED WINDS WERE AT 090 DEG. AT 30 FT ABOVE THE RWY THE ACFT ENCOUNTERED A SUDDEN GUST OF WIND FROM 270 DEG. THE ACFT DRIFTED TO THERT SIDE OF THE RWY OVER A GRASS AREA WHERE THE RT WING CONTACTED THE GROUND.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 1,924 hours in all; 828 in this make and model; 5 in the last 90 days; 1,707 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 5, 1984
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-BA (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BTP Butler PA at 7:35 pm
- Destination: 9G1 Tarentum PA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 2, 2,650 ft by 40 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 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.
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.