Individually Owned: 150,657
Corporate Owned: 137,281
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report
Newton, Wisconsin 53063
Saturday, March 15, 1997 15:28 CST
NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident
At 1400 cst, modified Douglas DC-3C/BT-67R, TZ389, & Beech A36, N3657A, began formation flight to get DC-3 flying time & for the 2nd occupant of the A36 to get aerial photos of the DC-3. A witness saw the airplanes (acft) at 500' to 700' agl, "flying close together heading north." He said "the big plane (DC-3) was flying straight & level. The little plane (A36) was just to the west of the big plane. The little plane then hit the big plane near the middle." After impact, pieces of acft were seen falling. Another witness saw the DC-3 heading north & the A36 circling it above & below. On its last pass, the A36 circled behind the DC-3, then crossed over the top & hitting the top of the DC-3. About 5 seconds after impact, the DC-3 gently rolled/turned westbound (apparently descending & gaining airspeed); the left wing then came off, followed by the right wing about 2 seconds later. Parts of the A36 empennage were found 3590 to 4910 ft from the main wreckage. There was evidence that during impact, the DC-3 elevator and rudder controls were severed. No preimpact anomalies were found. At 1445cst, an AIRMET had been issued, forecasting light to moderate turbulence below 8,000 ft msl. Toxicology tests of the DC-3 copilot's blood showed 0.127 mcg/ml amitriptyline (a prescription antidepressant with sedative side effects), 0.039 mcg/ml nortriptyline (metabolite of amitriptyline), and an undetermined amount of ephedrine and phenylpropanolamine (over-the-counter medications used in cold preparations, diet aids & stimulants).
NTSB Probable Cause Narrative
failure of the Beech A36 pilot to maintain clearance from the modified Douglas DC-3, while positioning the A36 for photography of the DC-3.
Event Information
| Type of Event | Accident |
| Event Date | 3/15/1997 |
| Event Day of the Week | Saturday |
| Time of Event | 1528 |
| Event Time Zone | Central Standard Time |
| Event City | NEWTON |
| Event State | WISCONSIN |
| Event Country | -- |
| Zipcode of the event site | 53063 |
| Event Date Year | 1997 |
| Event Date Month | 3 |
| MidAir Collision Indicator | Yes |
| On Ground Collision occurred ? | No |
| Event Location Latitude | -- |
| Event Location Longitude | -- |
| Event Location Airport | |
| Event Location Nearest Airport ID | |
| Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport | Off Airport/Airstrip |
| Distance from airport in statute miles | -- |
| Degrees magnetic from airport | -- |
| Airport Elevation | -- |
| Weather Briefing Completeness | Not pertinent |
| Investigator's weather source | Weather Observation Facility |
| Time of the weather observation | 1614 Eastern Standard Time |
| Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) | 20 |
| Weather Observation Facility ID | MTW |
| Elevation of weather observation facility | 651 |
| Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) | 7 |
| Time Zone of the weather observation | EST |
| Lighting Conditions | Day |
| Lowest Ceiling Height | 0 |
| Lowest Non-Ceiling Height | 0 |
| Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions | Clear |
| Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling | None |
| Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) | 0 |
| Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) | 0 |
| Visibility (Statute Miles) | 10 |
| Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) | 16 |
| Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) | 0 |
| Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) | 280 |
| Variable Wind Indicator | Unknown |
| Wind Speed (knots) | 15 |
| Wind Velocity Indicator | Unknown |
| Wind Gust Indicator | Unknown |
| Wind Gust (knots) | 20 |
| Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) | 30 |
| Density Altitude (feet) | 730 |
| Intensity of Precipitation | Unknown |
| METAR weather report | -- |
| Event Highest Injury | Fatal |
| On Ground, Fatal Injuries | 0 |
| On Ground, Minor Injuries | 0 |
| On Ground, Serious Injuries | 0 |
| Injury Total Fatal | 4 |
| Injury Total Minor | -- |
| Injury Total None | -- |
| Injury Total Serious | -- |
| Injury Total All | 4 |
| Investigating Agency | NTSB |
| NTSB Docket Number (internal use) | 424 |
| NTSB Notification Source | -- |
| NTSB Notification Date | Mar 15 1997 12:00AM |
| NTSB Notification Time | 1700 |
| Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information | IMAGE |
| Date of most recent change to record | Jul 25 2001 4:45AM |
| User who most recently changed record | dbo |
| Basic weather conditions | Visual Meteorological Cond |
| FAA District Office | -- |
Aircraft Involved |
||
|---|---|---|
Aircraft #1 |
Aircraft #2 |
|
| Aircraft Registration Number | TZ389 | N3657A |
| NTSB Number | CHI97FA084A | CHI97FA084B |
| Missing Aircraft Indicator | N | N |
| Federal Aviation Reg. Part | Part 91: General Aviation | Part 91: General Aviation |
| Type of Flight Plan filed | None | None |
| Flight plan Was Activated? | -- | -- |
| Damage | Destroyed | Destroyed |
| Aircraft Fire | None | None |
| Aircraft Explosion | None | None |
| Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name | Douglas | Beech |
| Aircraft Model | DC-3C/BT-67R | A36 |
| Aircraft Series Identifier | DC-3C/BT-6 | A36 |
| Aircraft Serial Number | 26002 | E-188 |
| Certified Max Gross Weight | 30400 | 3600 |
| Aircraft Category | Airplane | Airplane |
| Aircraft Registration Class | Foreign Registered/U.S. Soil | U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil |
| Aircraft is a homebuilt? | No | No |
| Flight Crew Seats | -- | -- |
| Cabin Crew Seats | -- | -- |
| Passenger Seats | -- | -- |
| Total number of seats on the aircraft | 2 | 5 |
| Number of Engines | 2 | 1 |
| Fixed gear or retractable gear | Retractable | Retractable |
| Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection | Annual | Annual |
| Date of Last Inspection | Feb 5 1997 12:00AM | Jun 1 1996 12:00AM |
| Airframe hours since last inspection | 10 | 194 |
| Airframe Hours | 17616 | 5776 |
| ELT Installed | Yes | Yes |
| ELT Activated | Yes | Yes |
| ELT Aided Location of Event Site | No | No |
| ELT Type | -- | -- |
| Aircraft Owner Name | BASLER TURBO CONVERSIONS, INC | BASLER TURBO CONVERSIONS, INC. |
| Aircraft Owner Street Address | P. O. BOX 2305 | P.O. BOX 2305 |
| Aircraft Owner City | OSHKOSH | OSHKOSH |
| Aircraft Owner State | WI | WI |
| Aircraft Owner Country | ||
| Aircraft Owner Zipcode | 54903 | 54903 |
| Operator is an individual? | -- | -- |
| Operator Name | ||
| Operator Same as Owner? | Yes | Yes |
| Operator Is Doing Business As | -- | -- |
| Operator Address Same as Owner? | Yes | Yes |
| Operator Street Address | ||
| Operator City | ||
| Operator State | ||
| Operator Country | ||
| Operator Zip code | ||
| Operator Code | ||
| Owner has at least one certificate | None | None |
| Other Operator of large aircraft? | No | No |
| Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation | Unknown | Unknown |
| Operator Certificate Number | -- | -- |
| Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not | -- | -- |
| Indicates Domestic or International Flight | -- | -- |
| Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail | -- | -- |
| Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) | Unknown | Unknown |
| Second Pilot on Board | Yes | No |
| Departure Point Same as Event | No | No |
| Departure Airport Code | OSH | OSH |
| Departure City | OSHKOSH | OSHKOSH |
| Departure State | WI | WI |
| Departure Country | ||
| Departure Time | 1400 | 1400 |
| Departure Time Zone | EST | EST |
| Destination Same as Local Flt | dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere | dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere |
| Destination Airport Code | ||
| Destination City | ||
| Destination State | ||
| Destination Country | ||
| Specific Phase of Flight | Cruise | Cruise |
| Report sent to ICAO? | -- | -- |
| Evacuation occurred | -- | -- |
| Date of most recent change to record | Jul 25 2001 4:05AM | Jan 2 2001 10:34AM |
| User who most recently changed record | dbo | dbo |
| Since inspection or accident | -- | -- |
| Event Location Runway Number and Location | 0 | 0 |
| Runway Length | -- | -- |
| Runway Width | -- | -- |
| Sight Seeing flight | No | No |
| Air Medical Flight | No | No |
| Medical Flight | -- | -- |