Premium research interface

The modern interface for aviation safety intelligence.

Search investigations, review source evidence, monitor watched reports, and trace long-term patterns from one calm, data-first workspace.

63k+
Reports indexed
1940-2026
Coverage
Recent
Last data refresh
Featured Report

Loading…

Loading featured report…

Loading…
Open Report

Safety trends by operating rule

Track fatal and non-fatal accident patterns across Part 91, Part 135, and Part 121 operations.

Loading trend charts…

Browse the aviation graph

Move quickly by aircraft, airport, operator, and time with indexes built for research, not wandering.

Last Data Update

By Decade

By Month

Aircraft Manufacturer

More manufacturers

Airports

More airports

Operators

More operators

About

Aviation safety reports, made easier to study

NTSB Reports is an independent research and search tool for public aviation accident and incident records. It brings NTSB aviation reports, structured fields, docket files, extracted figures, photos, videos, and update history into one searchable interface.

The goal is practical safety education: make it faster to find relevant investigations, compare similar events, review factual records, and understand the evidence behind probable-cause and preliminary reports.

The investigative work and source records belong to the National Transportation Safety Board and the published investigation record. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NTSB.

FAQs

NTSB Report

April 1, 2024 · Beech 95B55 B · N7371R

St. Augustine, FL

Overview

Report Status
Final with probable cause
Event Type
Accident
Date
April 1, 2024
Injury Outcomes
No injuries (2 uninjured)
Location
St. Augustine, FL
Aircraft
Beech 95B55 B (1974)
Tail Number
N7371R
Injuries
None
Aircraft Damage
Substantial
NTSB Number
ERA24LA214

On April 1, 2024, about 1211 eastern daylight time, a Beech 95B55, N7371R, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near St. Augustine, Florida. The pilot and pilot-rated passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 test flight. According to the pilot, he departed Northeast Florida Regional Airport (SGJ), St. Augustine, Florida on a test flight after the airplane had undergone an extensive annual inspection. At approximately 500 ft the pilot initiated a turn toward the west to go to an area where he could proceed with the engine break-in process. At that time, the airplane lost complete electrical power and so he decided to return to SGJ and land. Because the airplane had lost radio communication, the passenger contacted the control tower via mobile phone, and declared an emergency. The pilot and passenger then proceeded to manually lower the landing gear and cranked it until it would not turn any longer. Soon after touchdown the right main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane came to rest on the right side of runway 31. According to the pilot-rated passenger, who was also a mechanic, he was in the right seat of the airplane to track and record engine data via pictures and video using his mobile phone camera for the first hour of the break-in procedure of the two new engines that had been installed. Shortly after takeoff the landing gear were retracted, and the passenger took a picture of the engine instrumentation, and the pilot turned to the west. About 10 to 15 seconds later the entire instrument panel went black and appeared to lose power, along with their radio equipment, the only indication of anything wrong was that the right alternator inoperative light was on. After the passenger contacted the air traffic control tower by mobile phone, he noted that the pilot was trying to hand crank the landing gear down, deconflict traffic, and fly the airplane, so the passenger offered to take over hand cranking the landing gear down. He turned the hand crank until he could no longer turn it. The pilot then attempted to turn it more and could not. At this time, they were on an extended downwind and starting to turn base. The passenger again called the air traffic control tower, who cleared them to land, and the passenger asked him if he could tell if their landing gear was down. He said he could see three gear legs but could not tell if they were locked. The airplane touched down on the main landing gear with the nose landing gear following shortly after. The airplane then rolled out for about 100 feet, and then the right-side main landing gear started to fold. The right wing then came in to contact with the runway, and then started to drag the airplane off to the right. The passenger then reached down and shut off the right and left fuel selectors just before the airplane slid off the right side of the runway, went through a runway sign, and over its concrete pad as the rest of the landing gear folded. The airplane came to rest about 15 to 20 feet beyond that. The passenger then egressed and the pilot followed. Postaccident examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the airframe had incurred substantial damage during the accident sequence. No data was recorded from the avionics system for the accident flight as no SD card was in the designated slot when the airplane was being operated.

NTSB Probable Cause

The incomplete extension of the landing gear into the down-and-locked position for reasons that could not be determined. .

Full Narrative

On April 1, 2024, about 1200 eastern daylight time, a Beech 95B55 airplane, N7371R, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near St. Augustine, Florida. The pilot and pilot-rated passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 test flight. According to the pilot, he and the pilot-rated passenger, who was also a mechanic, departed Northeast Florida Regional Airport (SGJ), St. Augustine, Florida, on a post-maintenance test flight after the airplane had undergone an extensive annual inspection. About 500 ft above ground level the pilot initiated a turn toward the west to go to an area where he could proceed with the engine break-in process. At that time, the airplane lost complete electrical power. The pilot decided to return to SGJ and land. Because the airplane had lost radio communication, the passenger contacted the control tower using his mobile phone and declared an emergency. The pilot and the pilot-rated passenger then attempted to manually lower the landing gear using the emergency landing gear extension handle. Both said they turned the handle until it would not turn any further; however, the pilot said that he may not have been able to turn the handle enough to fully extend the landing gear to the down-and-locked position. The pilot-rated passenger asked the control tower if the landing gear looked extended, and the tower responded that they could see three landing gear down but could not tell if they were fully extended. When the airplane touched down, the right main landing gear collapsed. The airplane slid off the right side of the runway and collided with a runway sign, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage and right wing. Examination of the wreckage by an FAA inspector could not determine the reason for the electrical failure. Attempts to conduct a functional test of the landing gear were unsuccessful due to impact damage.

Flight

Event TypeAccident
Event Time12:00 EDT
Nearest AirportNortheast Florida Regional Air (0.1nm)
Runway31
Runway Length8001 ft
Runway Width150 ft
Flight Plan FiledNone
Flight Plan ActivatedNo
Aircraft FireNo
Aircraft ExplosionNo

Aircraft

AircraftBeech 95B55 B
Tail NumberN7371R
Aircraft CategoryAir
DamageSubstantial
Operating RulePart 91
Engines2
Engine TypeReciprocating
Engine DetailsContinental · IO-470-L · Reciprocating · 260 | Continental · IO-470-L · Reciprocating · 260
Seats6

People & Injuries

Injury SummaryNo injuries (2 uninjured)
Fatal0
Serious0
Minor0
Uninjured2
Total2
Crew 1Second Class · None
Crew 2Age 73 · Second Class · None

Conditions

ConditionsVMC
LightDaylight
Wind180° @ 9 kt
Visibility10 sm
CeilingNone
Temperature / Dew Point61 F
Altimeter30.12 inHg
Observation Time12:18
Weather SourceWFAC

Appendix: Source Data