Colonial C-1 accident near Bremerton, Washington, June 23, 1989
On June 23, 1989 at about 10:19 pm local time, a Colonial C-1, registered N260B, was destroyed in an accident near Bremerton, Washington (Bremerton airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
MALFUNCTION OF BOTH MAGNETOS DUE TO DETERIORATION OF THE COILS, WHICH RESULTED IN THE LOSS OF ENGINE POWER. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: AN INADEQUATE AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVE (NO CALENDAR TIME LIMITS), AND THE LACK OF SUITABLE TERRAIN (ROUGH/UNEVEN) IN THE EMERGENCY LANDING AREA.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 23, 1989 · about 10:19 pm local time
- Place
- Bremerton, Washington · Bremerton · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Colonial C-1 · all C-1s on the register
- Registration
- N260B · no longer on the register · serial 20
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ABOUT 9 MIN AFTER TAKEOFF, AS THE PLTS WERE MNVRG ON A LOCAL TRAINING FLT, THE ENG LOST POWER. AN EMERG LNDG WAS MADE IN THE ONLY AVAILABLE PLACE, A CLEAR CUT AREA OF AN EVERGREEN FOREST. DURING THE LNDG, THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH ROUGH TERRAIN & A STUMP. FUNCTIONAL TESTS REVEALED THAT BOTH MAGNETOS WOULD PRODUCE A SPARK AT AMBIENT TEMP, BUT THEY WOULD NOT OPERATE WHEN HEATED TO NORMAL OPERATING TEMP. BEFORE THIS FLT, THE 1957 MODEL ACFT HAD BEEN IN STORAGE FOR AN EXTDD PERIOD OF TIME. RECORDS SHOWED THAT AN ANNUAL INSPN HAD BEEN PERFORMED ON 4/3/87 AT 1294.3 HRS OF SVC. THE NEXT ANNUAL INSPN WAS JUST BEFORE THE ACDNT FLT AT 1294.8 HRS. THE COILS IN THE BENDIX S4LN-20 SERIES MAGNETOS INSTALLED IN THE ACFT WERE REQUIRED TO BE REPLACED BEFORE 2000 HRS TIME-IN-SVC IAW AD 73-07-04 (ISSUED IN 1973) & BENDIX SVC BUL #560A. THE AD HAD NOT BEEN COMPLIED WITH. NEITHER THE AD NOR THE SVC BUL SPECIFIED A CALENDAR TIME LIMIT FOR MANDATORY REPLACEMENT OF THE MAGNETO COILS.
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: helicopter
- Flight time: 11,483 hours in all; 4 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 11,412 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,295 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, June 20, 1989; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: John Wells Aviation Service
The flight
- Departed from: PWT Bremerton WA at 10:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:30 pm from PWT, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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 SEA89FA118.