Learjet 24 N44GA
30 January 1984 · Avalon, California, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 30 January 1984 at about 21:30 local time, a Learjet 24 registered N44GA, operated by Aviation Business Flights, was involved in an accident near Avalon, California, United States. 6 people were on board and 6 died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.
The record
- Date
- at 21:30
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Avalon, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- Catalina (AVX)
- Coordinates
- 33.3792, -118.4498
- Aircraft
- Learjet 24
- Registration
- N44GA
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Aviation Business Flights
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Business
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Santa Rosa → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- DCA84AA016
People
6 people died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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
THE ACFT DEPARTED ON A SALES DEMO FLT TO MONTEREY, CA WITH POTENTIAL BUYERS ABOARD. EN ROUTE, THE DESTINATION WAS CHANGED TO AVALON, CA. UNICOM ADVISED THE CREW OF THE WIND DIRECTION & SPEED ON DOWNWIND. WITNESSES REPORTED THE ACFT WAS SLIGHTLY HI ON FINAL, BUT SAID THE PLT CORRECTED THE ANGLE OF DESCENT. THE ACFT TOUCHED DOWN APRX 500' DOWN THE RWY, WHICH WAS CROWNED (SLOPED UPWARD FOR APRX THE 1ST 2000', THEN LEVELED OFF). THE CREW COULD NOT SEE THE END OF THE RWY AT TOUCHDOWN. THE THRUST REVERSERS WERE DEPLOYED APRX 1000' AFTER TOUCHDOWN. WITNESSES HEARD THE ENG SOUND INCREASE,THEN DECREASE, THEN INCREASE AGAIN AS THE ACFT WENT OFF THE RWY & OVER A 90' BLUFF. FIRE ERUPTED IMMEDIATELY. WITHIN 3 MIN, ARPT PSNL ARRIVED WITH FIREFIGHTING EQUIP, BUT THEY WERE NOT TRAINED AS FIREFIGHTERS & DID NOT TRY TO STOP THE FIREFOR FEAR OF AN EXPLOSION. NO EVIDENCE OF A MECHANICAL FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND. FOUND L FLAP EXTENDED, L SPOILER RETRACTED & LOCKED, TIRE MARKS ON RWY. ESTIMATED GROSS WT: 11,500 LBS. COMPUTED LANDING DIST OVER A 50' OBSTCL: 3100'.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Learjet 24 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Nov 1986 | Learjet 24 | Lake Tahoe, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 3 Sep 1986 | Learjet 24 | Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 7 May 1986 | Learjet 24 | Hollywood, Florida, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 28 Mar 1987 | Learjet 24A | Eagle, Colorado, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 1 Oct 1981 | Learjet 24 | Felt, Oklahoma, United States | Sky Train Air, | Fatal | 3 |
| 17 Jun 1988 | Learjet 24 | W. Palm Beach, Florida, United States | Pegasus Jet Aviation | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 Jan 1984 | Cessna 401A | San Francisco, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 4 Aug 1984 | Eipper QUICKSILVER MX | Thousand Oaks, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 5 Feb 1984 | Hughes 500C (369HS) | San Diego, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 5 Feb 1984 | Cessna 180J | Hayward, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 14 Jul 1984 | Piper PA-31T | Concord, California, United States | - | Fatal | 6 |
| 5 Feb 1984 | Cessna 150M | Fremont, California, United States | Fremont Flying Service | No injuries | - |