Beechcraft Bonanza - Accidents and Incidents

Accidents and Incidents

  • On 3 February 1959, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, as well as the pilot Roger Peterson died when their Beechcraft Bonanza 35, registration N3794N, crashed shortly after takeoff, at night and in bad weather. This accident has become known as The Day the Music Died.
  • On July 31, 1964, country music star Jim Reeves and his pianist Dean Manuel died when the Beechcraft Debonair Reeves was piloting crashed in the Brentwood area of Nashville during a violent thunderstorm. The wreckage and bodies were discovered on 2 August 1964 amid dense foliage in a wooded area just off Baxter Lane next to US Interstate 65.
  • In February 1981, Apple Computer cofounder Steve Wozniak crashed his Beechcraft Bonanza while taking off from Santa Cruz Sky Park. The NTSB investigation revealed Wozniak did not have a "high performance" endorsement (making him legally unqualified to operate the airplane) and had a "lack of familiarity with the aircraft." The cause of the crash was determined to be a premature liftoff, followed by a stall and "mush" into a 12-foot embankment. Wozniak later made a full recovery, albeit with a case of temporary retrograde amnesia.
  • On 19 March 1982, Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Randy Rhoads was killed when the wing of the Bonanza F35 he was riding in hit the band's tour bus and the plane crashed into a tree and a nearby residence. The pilot and another passenger were also killed. The NTSB cited the causes of the crash as poor judgement, buzzing and misjudged clearance as well as indicating that the use of the aircraft was not authorized by the aircraft's owner.
  • On 13 March 2006, game show host Peter Tomarken crashed his Bonanza A36 into Santa Monica Bay during climb-out from the Santa Monica Airport in California. He was en route to San Diego to pick up a cancer patient who needed transportation to UCLA Medical Center for treatment. Tomarken and his wife were killed in the crash.

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