Beechcraft 95-B55 N260LH

Summary

On 29 January 1999 at about 22:30 local time, a Beechcraft 95-B55 registered N260LH was involved in an accident near Pearcy, Arkansas, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 January 1999 at 22:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Pearcy, Arkansas, United States

Nearest airport

Memorial Field (HOT)

Coordinates

34.4296, -93.2990

Aircraft

Beechcraft 95-B55

Registration

N260LH

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Business

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Hattiesburg → Hot Springs

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW99FA074

2 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain the minimum descent altitude during the instrument approach. Contributing factors were the pilot's failure to follow the instrument approach procedure, trees, mountainous terrain, low ceilings and foggy weather conditions.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the global positioning system (GPS) runway 5 approach to Hot Springs Memorial Airport, in instrument meteorological conditions, the twin-engine airplane impacted mountainous terrain at 1,020 feet msl, about one nautical mile (nm) right of the final approach course, and approximately 9 nm southwest of the airport. According to the approach plate, the airplane should have been at an altitude no lower than 2,300 feet on this segment of the approach. The last radar hit recorded was at 1622:44, as the airplane was descending through 2,800 feet, 14.2 nautical miles southwest of the airport. Two witnesses located near the accident site reported that about 1630 they heard a small aircraft coming from southwest of their farm, heading towards them at a 'very low' altitude. They heard the aircraft for about 10 seconds, then the sound of the engines was 'gone.' The witnesses also reported that the weather was 'extremely foggy,' and that they could not see the top of the mountain located behind their property. The missed approach procedure for the approach calls for a climbing right turn to 3,000 feet. Examination of the accident site indicated the airplane impacted trees while in a right turn. No anomalies were found with the airframe or engines that would have prevented normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.