Swearingen SA-226TC N63SA
16 October 1982 · Palm Springs, California, United States · Minor injuries
Summary
On 16 October 1982 at about 02:57 local time, a Swearingen SA-226TC registered N63SA, operated by Borrego Springs Airline, was involved in an accident near Palm Springs, California, United States. 18 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. No probable cause statement is available for this record.
The record
- Date
- at 02:57
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Palm Springs, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- Palm Springs (PSP)
- Coordinates
- 33.8500, -116.5602
- Aircraft
- Swearingen SA-226TC
- Registration
- N63SA
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Borrego Springs Airline
- Operating rule
- Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter
- Purpose of flight
- Unknown
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Palm Springs → Los Angeles
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Night/Dark
- NTSB number
- LAX83FA002
People
1 person had minor injuries.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 17 |
Probable cause
The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.
Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.
Read the full NTSB narrative
WHILE AT THE GATE WITH THE PASSENGERS SEATED & THE ENGINES RUNNING, THE COPILOT ATTEMPTED TO TURN UP HIS PANEL LIGHTS WITH THE RHEOSTAT LOCATED ON THE FAR RIGHT FORWARD PORTION OF THE SIDE ELECTRICAL PANEL. AT THAT INSTANT SMOKE BEGAN TO ERUPT AT HIS RIGHT KNEE POSITION. THE PASSENGERS WERE EVACUATED & THE COCKPIT FIRE WAS PUT OUT BY THE GROUND CREW. THE RHEOSTAT WAS FOUND TO BE CONTAMINATED WITH HYDRAULIC FLUID, & HEAVY ARCING WAS FOUND ON THE RHEOSTAT AT THE FULL HIGH POSITION. THREE HYDRAULIC LINES WERE FOUND TO BE BURNED IN HALF FORWARD & UNDER THE CIRCUIT BREAKER PANEL ACCESS DOOR. EXAMINATION OF THE HYDRAULIC BRAKE LINE REVEALED STRESS CRACKS DUE TO CHEMICAL CONTAMINATION OR FATIGUE, PERMITTING BRAKE FLUID TO ESCAPE INTO THE SURROUNDING AREA. THE BRAKE FLUID WAS IGNITED BY THE ARCING COPILOT'S RHEOSTAT, & THE FIRE REACHED AN OXYGEN LINE WITHIN SECONDS CAUSING A BLOW-OUT HOLE THRU THE FUSELAGE.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Swearingen SA-226TC accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Sep 1982 | Swearingen SA-226TC | Appleton, Wisconsin, United States | Air Wisconsin | No injuries | - |
| 6 Nov 1982 | Swearingen SA-226TC | San Francisco, California, United States | Nevada National Leasing Co. | Minor injuries | - |
| 7 Dec 1982 | Swearingen SA-226TC | Chantilly, Virginia, United States | FLT America, Inc | No injuries | - |
| 23 Dec 1982 | Swearingen SA-226TC | Klamath Falls, Oregon, United States | Gatx Third Aircraft Corp. | No injuries | - |
| 2 Jan 1983 | Swearingen SA-226TC | Laurel, Mississippi, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 25 Feb 1983 | Swearingen SA 226TC | St. Louis, Missouri, United States | Air Midwest | Serious injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Jan 1982 | Piper PA-28R-201T | Truckee, California, United States | Larry Laurich | No injuries | - |
| 1 Feb 1982 | Cessna 180K | El Cajon, California, United States | Hartley Warren | No injuries | - |
| 14 Jun 1982 | Cessna 182 | Truckee, California, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 30 Jun 1982 | Cessna 205 | El Centro, California, United States | Thomas James Sullivan | Minor injuries | - |
| 31 May 1982 | Cessna 182 | Truckee, California, United States | Charlie Roeschen | Fatal | 1 |
| 6 Nov 1982 | Cessna 172 | Antioch, California, United States | Executive Air | No injuries | - |