NTSB Releases Preliminary Plane Crash Report

The National Transpiration Safety Board has released preliminary aviation accident report on the plane crash four miles southwest of Palestine Saturday, March 6.

At 1:40 p.m. March 6, a Beech 35 airplane, N3394V, operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight, crashed just outside of Palestine at Gum Creek Ranch.

The report states the airplane was recently purchased by the pilot and was being transported to the pilot's home in the greater Dallas area.

The plane took off from Anahuac, with no filed flight plan, and the pilot reported that while enroute to Dallas, the engine lost power. The pilot maneuvered the airplane for a forced landing. During the landing, the plane struck trees and came to rest in a grass field on a ranch about four miles southwest of Palestine.

The report states the airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings and the fuselage.

The pilot was seriously injured.

The report states the passenger was fatally injured. The NTSB previously confirmed the passenger's death Friday, March 12.

The report does not identify the pilot or passenger.

A Federal Aviation Administration safety inspector and an air safety investigator from Textron Aviation traveled to the accident site to investigate and document the scene. The wreckage was recovered from the accident site for a future examination of the airframe, engine and propeller.

According to Elizabeth Isham Cory, a public affairs specialist with the Office of Communications for the Federal Aviation Administration, the crash is under investigation by the FAA. The National Transportation Safety Board will determine the probable cause of the accident.

Cory said these investigations take a year or more to complete.

This is preliminary information and subject to change.

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