Beech K-35 accident near Halley, Idaho, August 7, 1988
On August 7, 1988, a Beech K-35, registered N3PH, was substantially damaged in an accident near Halley, Idaho (Friedman Memorial airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 7, 1988
- Place
- Halley, Idaho · Friedman Memorial · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech K-35 · all K-35s on the register
- Registration
- N3PH · no longer on the register · serial D 5740
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ENGINE PWR LOSS OCCURRED APPROACHING DESTINATON ABOUT 2000 FT AGL. PLT SWITCHED FUEL AND ATTEMPTED RESTART BUT FAILED TO UTILIZE PROPER PROCEDURES. ACFT COLLIDED WITH WIRE FENCE HIDDEN IN TALL VEGETATION ON CHOSEN FORCED LNDG SITE. INVESTIGATION REVEALED LEFT FUEL TANK, IN OPERATION AT PWR LOSS, WAS BELOW USABLE LEVEL. RIGHT TANK LEVEL WAS FOUND NEAR UNUSABLE FUEL LEVEL. AUX TANKS WERE NEAR FULL.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,764 hours in all; 160 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 1,764 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,129 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 1988; 17 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470-C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OAK Oakland CA at 9:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 15,000 ft; scat at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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.
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.