On July 26, 1985, a Beech A36 (registration N130T) was involved in an aviation accident near Santa Rosa, NM. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's failure to maintain situational awareness during a night cross-country flight, which resulted in controlled flight into terrain. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
A pilot and a passenger were killed when their aircraft crashed west of Santa Rosa, New Mexico, during an unfiled night cross-country flight from Dalhart, Texas.
What happened
The pilot departed Dalhart Municipal Airport in Dalhart, Texas, on a night cross-country flight bound for Quemedo, New Mexico. The flight plan was not filed with air traffic control. During the en route portion of the trip, the pilot made an unscheduled stop at Hereford, Texas, to pick up a friend who served as a passenger.
After departing Hereford, the aircraft disappeared from radar coverage just west of Santa Rosa, New Mexico. Search and rescue personnel located the wreckage in that vicinity. The impact forces were severe enough to destroy the aircraft completely. Both the pilot and the passenger sustained fatal injuries in the crash.
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain situational awareness during a night cross-country flight, which resulted in controlled flight into terrain.