Beech 18 accident near Seattle, Washington, March 11, 1986
On March 11, 1986 at about 4:06 am local time, a Beech 18, registered N926T, was substantially damaged in an accident near Seattle, Washington (Seattle-Tacoma Inter'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were 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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 11, 1986 · about 4:06 am local time
- Place
- Seattle, Washington · Seattle-Tacoma Inter'L · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 18
- Registration
- N926T · registry record · serial BA711
- Damage
- Substantial 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 PILOT LOST CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT ON TAKEOFF AND A SUBSEQUENT GROUNDLOOP OCCURRED. ALTHOUGH THE PILOT HAS A DC-3 TYPE RATING, HE HAD ONLY 20 HOURS IN THIS AIRCRAFT.
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: 4,178 hours in all; 20 in this make and model; 203 in the last 90 days; 4,008 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,074 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 9,900 lb
- Seats: 11
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6-27 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Methow Aviation
The flight
- Destination: BOI Boise ID
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 16, 11,900 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 120° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:47 am from SEA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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 SEA86LA076.