NTSB CAROL · Event
Event ATL89FA194
Registry · N55TP
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
ROBINSON HELICOPTER R44 II
Year of manufacture
2006
TCDS
H11NM · ROBINSON HELICOPTER CO
Engine
LYCOMING IO-540-AE1A5 (260 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20061002
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A6FEC9
Registrant of record
MYERS DWAYNE L
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
THE PILOT'S LOSS OF CONTROL DUE TO SPATIAL DISORIENTATION WHILE OPERATING IN INSTRUMENT WEATHER CONDITIONS.
Factual narrative
THE FLIGHT HAD DEPARTED RALEIGH DURHAM INTL AIRPORT AT 1119. AT 1122 THE FLIGHT WAS CLEARED TO THE TAR RIVER VOR. THE PILOT 'ROGERED' THE INSTRUCTIONS, AND THIS WAS THE LAST RECORDED CONVERSATION. WITNESSES REPORTED HEARING THE ENGINES REVVING UP BEFORE THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED THE GROUND, AND ONE WITNESS REPORTED SEEING THE AIRPLANE IN A NOSE LOW ATTITUDE BEFORE THE IMPACT. THE PILOT DID NOT REPORT EXPERIENCING WEATHER DIFFICULTIES. THERE WERE NO DEPICTIONS OF THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WITHIN THE FLIGHT'S FLIGHT PATH VICINITY ON ATC RADAR. NO PRE-IMPACT FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND. RADAR DATA SHOWED SOME INSTABILITY IN HEADING, ALTITUDE AND AIRSPEED BETWEEN 1120:51 AND 1123:40. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1989_ATL89FA194.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (loss of control, spatial disorientation, thunderstorm). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2025 · Journal article (IJAAA)
Design, Implementation, and Testing of Spatial Disorientation Scenarios in a Modified Hexapod Motion Simulator
Abstract Investigations into aviation accidents aim to identify root causes and enhance safety. Despite advancements in safety measures, technology, and education, general aviation accident rates rema…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2025 · Journal article (JAAER)
A Scoping Review of Aviation Loss of Control Inflight Research
Loss of control – inflight (LOC-I) contributes to aircraft accidents at unacceptably high rates. Significant industry efforts and research have aimed to improve LOC-I prevention, detection, and recove…
- SKYbrary (Eurocontrol) 2024 · SKYbrary article
Loss of Control In-Flight (LOC-I) — SKYbrary Knowledge Base
SKYbrary comprehensive knowledge-base entry on Loss of Control In-Flight — definitions, contributing factors, accident case studies (Air France 447, Colgan 3407), and prevention strategies.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2024 · Journal article (IJAAA)
The Impact of Thunderstorms on Take-off Data in South Africa
Aviation and meteorology are entwined disciplines, as aviation occurs in the atmosphere. Prevailing weather conditions at take-off are of utmost importance to aviation.
- NTSB Aircraft Accident Reports 2022 · Accident report
Loss of Control on Takeoff in Icing Conditions — Citation 560XL
Cessna Citation 560XL fatal takeoff icing accident, March 2018. Investigation of a Citation 560XL loss-of-control takeoff accident in icing conditions.
- AOPA Air Safety Institute 2022 · Safety advisor
Safety Advisor: Spatial Disorientation
Safety advisor on the perceptual illusions that cause spatial disorientation: the leans, graveyard spiral, somatogravic and somatogyral illusions, false horizon, and Coriolis.
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗