Piston Beechcraft Accidents 3/15/2024 through 4/8/2024
Official information from FAA and NTSB sources (unless otherwise noted). Editorial comments (contained in parentheses), year-to-date summary and closing comments are those of the author. All information is preliminary and subject to change. Comments are meant solely to enhance flying safety. Please use these reports to help you more accurately evaluate the potential risks when you make your own decisions about how and when to fly.
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THE WEEKLY ACCIDENT UPDATE IS AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCT OF MASTERY FLIGHT TRAINING, INC.
New reports this week
3/16 1910Z (1510 local Saturday afternoon): A Be23-24 “Landed and veered off the runway hitting multiple lights and [a] taxiway sign which caused the main gear and left main flap [sic] to separate,” at Somerset, Pennsylvania. There were no reported injuries and airplane damage is “unknown.” N200AG (MA-285) is a 1967 A23-24.
(“Loss of directional control during landing”)
3/17 0028Z (2028 local Sunday evening): A Be36 “veered off the taxiway into to the grass” during ground movement at night at Danville, Connecticut. No one was hurt and airplane damage is “unknown.” N99NP (E-809) is a 1976 A36.
(“Taxiway excursion”; “Night”)
3/17 1220Z (0820 local Sunday morning): The pilot of a Be36 “declared an emergency due to an oil pressure issue.” The pilot “attempted to divert” to a nearby airport but “crashed in a field” near Waycross, Georgia with “substantial” aircraft damage but no injuries. N729CW (E-2390) is a 1987 A36.
(“Engine failure/oil pressure loss in flight/off-airport landing”; “Substantial” damage)
3/18 2314Z (1814 local Monday evening): A Be33’s nose gear collapsed at Sherman, Texas. No one was hurt and airplane damage is “unknown.” N488DD (CE-143) is a 1967 35-C33A.
(“Gear collapse during landing”)
3/26 2110Z (1410 local Tuesday afternoon): Damage to a Be35 was “minor,” and no one aboard the Bonanza was hurt, when it’s “engine stalled” while departing Lakeport, California, the pilot put it down on the runway, and the airplane “went off the end of [the] runway.” N3374V (D-4042) is a 1955 F35.
(“Engine failure during takeoff/overran runaway”—it sounds like a great job on the part of the pilot. FLYING LESSONS discussed recently [January 11, 2024] that in many if not most cases once an airplane is airborne there may not be enough runway remaining to land and stop. It’s still far better to run off the end of the runway under control than to stall and crash out of control.)
3/28 1755Z (1255 local Thursday afternoon): A Be55’s “left main gear collapsed” on arrival at Mineral Wells, Texas. The two aboard escaped injury and damage was not reported. N7885C (TE-72) is a 1966 95-C55.
(“Gear collapse during landing”)
3/30 2115Z (1715 local Saturday afternoon): “During takeoff” from the mountain airport of Angel Fire, New Mexico,” a Be33 “caught a crosswind,” was “blown off the runway” and “ended up in a ditch.” The four aboard were all unhurt and damage to the Debonair is “unknown”. N9989R (CD-221) is a 1960 35-33.
(“Loss of directional control during takeoff/crosswinds”—according to the FAA Aircraft Registry website, that aircraft’s registration expired several years ago and has not been renewed.)
4/1 1611Z (1111 local Monday afternoon): The pilot of a 95-55 “landed and [its] gear collapsed” at St Augustine, Florida. The two aboard were unhurt and airplane damage is “unknown.” N7371R (TC-1722) is a 1974 95-B55.
(“Gear collapse during landing”)
4/2 0110Z (1810 local Monday evening April 1st): A Be24 landed gear up at Torrance, California. The solo pilot was unhurt and airplane damage is “unknown.” N3803B (MC-747) is a 1980 C24R.
(“Gear up landing”)
4/3 1608Z (0908 local Wednesday morning): A Be24 departed Santa Barbara, California, and then “retuned to [the] airport due to the left gear being stuck in the up position.” During touchdown the Sierra “veered off [the] runway.” The solo pilot was unhurt and airplane damage is “unknown.” N3824R (MC-741) is a 1980 C24R.
(“Landing gear mechanical malfunction”)
4/6 2200Z (1800 local Saturday evening): A Be36 “landed,” its “nose gear collapsed and [the] engine caught on fire” at Cleveland, Ohio. The pilot received “minor” injuries and a passenger was unhurt, and the Bonanza suffered “substantial” damage. N1861M (E-1936) is a 1981 A36.
(“Gear collapse during landing/Post-crash fire”, “Substantial damage”—the Aviation Safety Network adds:
The aircraft reportedly porpoised on landing, causing the nose landing gear to collapse.)
New NTSB reports this week
2/11 A35 gear up landing at Maricopa, Arizona. Interestingly, this refutes (again) the notion that delaying any flap use until after the landing gear is extended is not foolproof for preventing a gear up landing. Add “substantial damage.”
3/10 Duke landing gear failure and asymmetric gear extension at Chino, California. From the report:
According to the pilot, he extended the landing gear about 5 miles from his destination airport and noticed that the left main landing gear green annunciator light was OFF. He cycled the landing gear, but subsequently observed the same result. The pilot also changed the left landing gear annunciator light bulb during the accident flight, but the annunciator light remained OFF. He then overflew the airport while he attempted to manually extend the landing gear with the hand crank, but was still unable to extend the left main landing gear. He then landed with the left main landing gear retracted, which resulted in substantial damage to the left wing.
Postaccident photographs of the left main landing gear revealed that the left main landing gear down lock cable was severed.
Change “Gear up landing” to “Asymmetric gear extension/inflight system failure” and add “Substantial” damage.
3/12 K35 oil loss and subsequent engine failure/off-airport landing at Front Royal, Virginia. From the report:
The airplane departed from Shannon Airport (EZF), Fredericksburg, Virginia at 1301 for a survey flight. While approaching the survey area, the pilot described that propeller control was unresponsive when he attempted to reduce engine rpm. The propeller control began to respond just prior to entering the intended survey area, so the pilot continued the flight. While conducting the survey work, the pilot noted that the No. 3 cylinder exhaust gas temperature was lower than normal, so he elected to pause the survey work and climb. At 6,300 ft msl, the pilot adjusted the propeller control to reduce engine rpm but there was no response. Shortly after, the rpm spiked followed by a loss of engine power. The pilot reviewed the emergency checklist and adjusted the airplane’s pitch to maintain best glide speed. While heading toward Front Royal-Warren County Airport (FRR), Front Royal, Virginia, the pilot began preparing for a forced landing and picked a field to his left. During the off-airport landing, the airplane contacted trees on the edge of the field before coming to rest upright. The pilot was uninjured.
A cursory postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed that the outboard portions of both wings had separated near their mid-span points and the fuselage was damaged aft of the cabin.
3/17 A36 engine seizure and off-airport landing at Blackshare, Georgia, cited above.
2024 SUMMARY
Reported Beechcraft piston mishaps, 2024
Total reported: 36 reports
Environment
Operation in VMC: 15 reports
Operation in IMC: 1 report
Weather “unknown” or “not reported”: 20 reports
Operation at night: 6 reports
Most Serious Injury
“Serious” injury accidents (not involving fatalities): 0 reports
Fatal accidents: 3 reports
Aircraft damage
“Substantial” damage: 10 reports
Aircraft “destroyed”: 4 reports
BONANZA/BARON Series: 29 reports
By Aircraft Type
Be35 Bonanza 9 reports
Be55 Baron 8 reports
Be36 Bonanza 5 reports
Be33 Debonair/Bonanza 4 reports
Be58 Baron 3 reports
Environment
Operation in VMC: 11 reports
Operation in IMC: 1 report
Weather “unknown” or “not reported”: 15 reports
Operation at night: 5 reports
Most Serious Injury
“Serious” injury accidents (not involving fatalities): 0 reports
Fatal accidents: 4 reports
Aircraft damage
“Substantial” damage: 6 reports
Aircraft “destroyed”: 3 reports
PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION OF CAUSE
(all subject to update per official findings):
FATAL and SERIOUS INJURY EVENTS 5 reports
Impact during landing 2 reports
Collision with obstacle during landing 1 report (Be55)
Landed short/Collided with vehicle on ground 1 report (Be55)
Loss of Control in Flight (LOC-I)
Stall/spin/Loss of control in flight/Dual instruction 1 report (Be55)
Inflight fire
Fire in flight during go-around 1 report (Be35)
OTHER EVENTS 23 reports
Landing gear related mishaps 13 reports
Gear collapse during landing 5 reports (two Be33s; Be35; two Be55s)
Gear up landing 2 reports (Be23-24, Be35)
Inadvertent gear retraction during landing 1 report (Be58)
Inadvertent gear retraction during taxi 1 report (Be35)
Wheel separation during landing 1 report (Be36)
Gear collapse during landing/Post-crash fire 1 report (Be36)
Engine failure 4 reports
Engine failure in flight 2 reports (both Be35s)
Engine failure during takeoff/overran runaway 1 report (Be35)
Engine failure/oil pressure loss in flight/off-airport landing 1 report (Be36)
Impact during landing 2 reports
Runway overrun/door open after liftoff/attempted to land on remaining runway/nose gear collapse 1 report (Be33)
Loss of directional control during landing 1 report (Be35)
Impact during takeoff 2 reports
Runway overrun/aborted takeoff 1 report (Be58)
Loss of directional control during takeoff/crosswinds 1 report (Be35)
Miscellaneous
Severe turbulence/hail encounter 1 report (Be58)
Bird strike 1 report (Be36)
Taxiway excursion at night 1 report (Be36)
BEECH AERO CLUB Series: 8 reports
By Aircraft Type
Be23 Musketeer/Sundowner 4 reports
Be24 Sierra 3 reports
Be76 Duchess 1 report
Environment
Operation in VMC: 5 reports
Operation in IMC: 0 reports
Weather “unknown” or “not reported”: 3 reports
Operation at night: 0 reports
Most Serious Injury
“Serious” injury accidents (not involving fatalities): 0 reports
Fatal accidents: 0 reports
Aircraft damage
“Substantial” damage: 2 reports
Aircraft “destroyed”: 1 report
PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION OF CAUSE
(all subject to update per official findings):
FATAL and SERIOUS INJURY EVENTS 0 reports
OTHER EVENTS 6 reports
Impact on landing 3 reports
Loss of directional control during landing/runway excursion 2 reports (Be23; Be23-24)
Hard landing/nose gear collapse/destroyed by fire 1 report (Be23)
Loss of directional control during attempted go-around 1 report (Be23)
Landing gear mishaps 3 reports
Gear collapse during landing 1 report (Be76)
Landing gear mechanical malfunction 1 report (Be24)
Gear up landing 1 report (Be24)
MISCELLANEOUS Models: 2 reports
Be45 (T-34) Mentor 1 report
Be60 Duke 1 report
Environment
Operation in VMC: 1 report
Operation in IMC: 0 reports
Weather “unknown” or “not reported”: 1 report
Operation at night: 0 reports
Most Serious Injury
“Serious” injury accidents (not involving fatalities): 0 reports
Fatal accidents: 0 reports
Aircraft damage
“Substantial” damage: 1 report
Aircraft “destroyed”: 0 reports
PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION OF CAUSE
(all subject to update per official findings):
FATAL and SERIOUS INJURY EVENTS 0 reports
OTHER EVENTS 2 reports
Gear up landing 1 report (Be60)
Asymmetric gear extension/inflight system failure 1 report (Be60)
Recognize an N-number? Want to check on friends or family that may have been involved in a cited mishap? Click here to find the registered owner. Please accept my sincere personal condolences if you or anyone you know was involved in a mishap. I welcome your comments, suggestions and criticisms.
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