Raytheon Aircraft Company C90A accident near Bakersfield, California, October 4, 2024
On October 4, 2024 at about 8:40 pm local time, a Raytheon Aircraft Company C90A, registered N6077X, was involved in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Bakersfield, California (Meadows Fld airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s incapacitation by an in-flight cardiac event that led to cardiac arrest.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 4, 2024 · about 8:40 pm local time
- Place
- Bakersfield, California · Meadows Fld · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Raytheon Aircraft Company C90A
- Registration
- N6077X · no longer on the register · serial LJ-1677
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While enroute at cruise altitude during a personal cross-country flight, the pilot lost consciousness. The passenger contacted air traffic control, who provided assistance with navigation and airplane operation, and successfully landed the airplane at a nearby airport. According to the pilot’s autopsy report, his cause of death was hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, and his manner of death was natural. The autopsy identified an enlarged heart. All four chambers of the heart were described as severely dilated. Moderate coronary artery disease was present. There was old scar tissue of the left cardiac ventricle, consistent with a past heart attack. The only identified traumatic injuries were sternum and rib fractures following emergency life-saving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) efforts. Based upon circumstances of the event and the pilot’s significant heart disease identified during the autopsy, it is likely that the pilot suffered an in-flight cardiac event, which resulted in his incapacitation and subsequent cardiac arrest.
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
- Medical event during enroute (cruise) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Physical › Impairment/incapacitation › Cardiovascular › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,001 hours in all; 0 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
Passenger
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Seats: 9
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Pratt And Whitney PT6A-21 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Pratt And Whitney PT6A-21 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: HND Henderson NV
- Destination: MRY Monterey CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 12L, 10,849 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 100°F (38°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.87 inHg
- Observation at 1:54 pm from KBFL, 4 miles away
Weather report (METAR): KBFL 042054Z 26008KT 10SM CLR 38/09 A2987 RMK AO2 SLP106 T03780089 58020 $
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
3 documents, released by the NTSB on August 26, 2026. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toxicological Report | PDF, 1 page · our copy | View Download |
| 2 | Medical Factual Report | PDF, 6 pages · our copy | View Download |
| 3 | NTSB Mor ATC Review | PDF, 1 page · our copy | View Download |
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.