Beech 58P accident near Pleasantville, New York, April 17, 1987
On April 17, 1987 at about 5:16 pm local time, a Beech 58P, registered N721WW, was destroyed in an accident near Pleasantville, New York (White Plains airport). It was a personal 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 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
- April 17, 1987 · about 5:16 pm local time
- Place
- Pleasantville, New York · White Plains · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech 58P · all 58Ps on the register
- Registration
- N721WW · registry record · serial TJ-475
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT REPT HIS AUTO-PILOT WAS MALFUNCTIONING ON THE APCH AND HE WAS HAVING AILERON PROBLEMS. HE REPT A LOSS OF PWR, GOT THE ENG STARTED, AND THEN REPT A DOUBLE PWR LOSS. PRIOR TO DISAPPEARING FROM RADAR HE REPT THAT HE WAS STARTING ONE ENGINE. THE ACFT IMPACTED A HOUSE. THE 5 OCCUPANTS OF THE HOUSE ESCAPED, ONE WITH MINOR INJURIES. THE ACFT AND HOUSE WERE DESTROYED BY FIRE. THE ACFT HAD FLOWN 2.2 HRS AFTER DEPARTING WITH 166 GALS OF USEABLE FUEL ON BOARD. NO EVIDENCE OF FUEL SPILLAGE WAS FOUND FROM THE RT WING WHICH HAD BROKEN OPEN ON IMPACT WITH A TREE. THE OCCUPANTS OF THE HOUSE REPT HEARING AND FEELING THE CRASH AND OBSERVING A LIQUID RAINING DOWN FROM A COLLAPSED CEILING IN AN ADJACENT ROOM. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE ACFT FUEL SELECTORS WERE IN THE CROSSFEED POSITIONS. THE NORMAL POSITION FOR OPERATION IS THE ON POSITION. CROSSFEEDING OF FUEL IS RESTRICTED TO EMERGENCY USE IN LEVEL FLT ONLY.
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: private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 850 hours in all; 60 in this make and model; 78 in the last 90 days; 70 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 398 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 19, 1987; 44 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,200 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: SRY Syracuse NY
- Destination: HPN White Plains NY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 16, 6,548 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 400 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:25 pm from HPN, 6 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.
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.