Rockwell International 690B accident near Grass Valley, California, October 4, 2014
On October 4, 2014 at about 8:43 pm local time, a 1977 Rockwell International 690B, registered N700PQ, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Grass Valley, California (Nevada County Air Park airport). It was a public-use flight (federal) under public-use (government) rules. No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s unstabilized approach and failure to go around and his subsequent failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 4, 2014 · about 8:43 pm local time
- Place
- Grass Valley, California · Nevada County Air Park · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Rockwell International 690B, built 1977 · all 690Bs on the register
- Registration
- N700PQ · registry record · serial 11389
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Public-use flight (federal) · public-use (government) rules
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airline transport pilot reported that, after returning from a fire mission, the airplane floated over the runway and landed long (about 1,500 to 1,800 ft down the runway, which left a maximum of about 2,850 ft of runway remaining). He reduced the power setting to flight idle and then adjusted the thrust levers to (beta) reverse. As the landing roll continued, the pilot adjusted the levers for less reverse thrust. Aware that the ground speed was too fast to make the normal exit turnoff, he applied full reverse thrust again. The airplane then swerved left, departed the runway, impacted some boulders, and came to rest upright in a drainage area. A postaccident examination of the brake system and engines revealed no evidence of mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. If the pilot had initiated a go-around when he realized the airplane was going to land long, he would not have had to modulate the reverse thrust multiple times to make the turnoff.
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
What happened, in order
- Abrupt maneuver during landing (landing roll) defining event
- Loss of control on ground during landing (landing roll)
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › (general) › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 26,520 hours in all; 550 in this make and model
- Last flight review: May 20, 2014
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,625.1 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, October 3, 2014; 1,050 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10,324 lb
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Garrett TPE-331-5-251 (turboprop); 8,339 hours total
- Engine 2: Garrett TPE-331-5-251 (turboprop); 8,338 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GOO Grass Valley CA at 4:43 pm
- Destination: GOO Grass Valley CA
- Runway 07, 4,351 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 32°F (0°C)
- Altimeter: 30.14 inHg
- Observation at 8:40 pm from GOO
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 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.
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 WPR15TA002.