Learjet 35A N500RW
24 May 1988 · West Paterson, New Jersey, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 24 May 1988 at about 07:16 local time, a Learjet 35A registered N500RW, operated by United Executive Jet, Inc., was involved in an accident near West Paterson, New Jersey, United States. 4 people were on board and 4 died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.
The record
- Date
- at 07:16
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- West Paterson, New Jersey, United States
- Nearest airport
- Teterboro (TEB)
- Coordinates
- Not recorded
- Aircraft
- Learjet 35A
- Registration
- N500RW
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- United Executive Jet, Inc.
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Positioning
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Teterboro → Morristown
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Night/Dark
- NTSB number
- ATL88MA184
People
4 people died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 4 | 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
WITNESSES RPTED A NORMAL TAKEOFF. RADAR INDICATED THE ACFT TURNED RIGHT AS CLEARED AND BEGAN CRUISE AT 1900 FT, HDG NW AT 235 KTS. 65 SECS AFTER CALLING CLEAR OF THE CONTROL ZONE THE ACFT'S RADAR TRACK ENDED. THE ACFT WAS FRAGMENTED BY THEIMPACT WITH ALL FLT CONTROL SURFACES AND ACFT EXTREMITIES FOUND AT THE IMPACT SITE. PITCH TRIM WAS FOUND IN THE NORMAL CRUISE SETTING WITH GEAR, FLAPS, AND SPOILERS IN THE RETRACTED POSITION. EXAM OF THE ENGS INDICATED OPERATION AT IMPACT.ACFT STRUCK THE TERRAIN IN APPROX 80 DEG NOSE DOWN, WNGS LEVEL ATTITUDE & HEADING OPPOSITE TO THE PREVIOUS DIRECTION OF FLT. IN FLIGHT SIMULATOR TESTS, WITH THE ACFT INITIALLY IN LEVEL FLT AT 1900 FEET AND THEN ROLLED INVERTED AND THE PITCHCONTROL MOVED AFT, THE ACFT ATTITUDE WAS SIMILAR TO THE ATTITUDE AT IMPACT. THERE WERE TWO UNAUTH PAX ON BOARD, ONE WAS THE COPILOT'S WIFE. THE IMPACT POINT WAS IN A VERY SMALL REGION OF UNCONTROLLED AIRSPACE VERY NEAR THE COPILOT'S AND RELATIVE'S HOMES. THE COPILOT WAS NEW TO JET OPERATIONS. THE ACFT DEPARTED WITH SEVERAL DISCREPANCIES UNCLEARED.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Learjet 35 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 Jul 1988 | Learjet 35A | Morristown, New Jersey, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 12 May 1987 | Learjet 35A | West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, United States | Corporate Jets, Inc. | Fatal | 2 |
| 4 Nov 1987 | Learjet 35A | Orlando, Florida, United States | Bizjet, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 4 Nov 1987 | Learjet 35A | Clearwater, Florida, United States | Jack Eckerd Corp. | No injuries | - |
| 8 Dec 1985 | Learjet 35A | Rochester, Minnesota, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 14 Feb 1991 | Learjet 35A | Aspen, Colorado, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Jun 1988 | Boeing A75N1 | Marlboro, New Jersey, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 18 Jun 1988 | Cessna 305A | Colts Neck, New Jersey, United States | Airways Advertising | No injuries | - |
| 4 Jul 1988 | Lake LA-4 | Linden, New Jersey, United States | Walter FIL | No injuries | - |
| 11 Jul 1988 | Champion 7GCAA | Lakewood, New Jersey, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 17 Jul 1988 | Mooney M20F | Princeton, New Jersey, United States | LEO Otway | No injuries | - |
| 10 Jun 1988 | Stinson 108-1 | Robbinsville, New Jersey, United States | Curtis Johnson | No injuries | - |