Beech A-36 accident near Newport, Oregon, October 25, 1995
On October 25, 1995 at about 8:15 pm local time, a Beech A-36, registered N990EC, was substantially damaged in an accident near Newport, Oregon. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's inadvertent shut-off of the fuel mixture control. Factors contributing to the accident were: the pilot's failure to perform adequate remedial action to regain engine power, his lack of familiarity with the accident airplane, and his failure to obtain/maintain a proper descent rate during the forced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 25, 1995 · about 8:15 pm local time
- Place
- Newport, Oregon · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech A-36 · all A-36s on the register
- Registration
- N990EC · no longer on the register · serial E734
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While descending to the destination airport, the airplane broke out of the clouds about 600 feet above the ground and the pilot cancelled his IFR flight plan. Immediately after descending out of the clouds, witnesses reported that the engine began to 'sputter,' then quit. They observed the airplane impact level terrain during a rapid rate of descent. Examination of the wreckage revealed that the vernier mixture control was found in the idle cutoff position, and the throttle was found in a cruise power position. The airplane also had an additional manual turbocharger vernier control, and it was found partially engaged. The pilot received serious head injuries and stated that he cannot remember the accident flight. He had logged 11 hours in the accident airplane during the 105 days preceding the date of the accident. He had not flown the accident airplane, or any other turbocharged airplane with similar cockpit controls, prior to that time. He had flown eight consecutive flights in airplanes that had dissimilar cockpit controls prior to the accident flight and subsequent to his last flight in type.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,400 hours in all; 11 in this make and model; 45 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days; 1,254 as pilot in command; 151 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,977 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 24, 1995; 128 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-BA(C) (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PDX Portland OR at 7:20 pm
- Destination: ONP OR
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 18 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 600 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:18 pm from ONP, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.