Beechcraft Piston Aircraft Accidents
Calendar Year 2005 Summary
Addendum: Audit January 11, 2007
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.
©2005-2007 Mastery Flight Training, Inc. All Rights Reserved
All information is preliminary and subject to change. Comments on preliminary topics 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.
An audit of 2005 NTSB reports revealed these additional mishaps that were not previously reported in the Weekly Accident Update:
NEW NTSB REPORTS
6/30 0240Z (2140 local 6/29/2005): A Be 35 struck a deer during a night landing at Boerne, Texas. The lone pilot was not hurt; aircraft damage was "substantial". "Dark night visual meteorological conditions prevailed." N8735A (D-2157) is a 1949 A35 that has subsequently been sold.
("Impact with animal on runway during landing"; "Substantial damage"; "Night")
11/11 (time not reported): During a night landing at Montgomery, New York, a Be33 "landed short" and suffered "substantial" damage. "The pilot was making a night visual approach to an airport when, on short final, the pilot-activated runway lights timed out. [She] re-activated the lights, which came back on at a high intensity that 'adversely affected [her] night vision and depth perception.' During the time the lights were out, the airplane descended below the glide path, and by the time she realized it, the pilot felt that she could not have successfully executed a go-around because 'the aircraft would have most likely lost lift and stalled.' According to a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, the airplane then landed 'short and hard.'" Weather conditions were not reported. N1813W (CE-413) was a 1972 F33A that was stricken from the registry in August 2006.
("Landed short"; "Substantial damage"; "Night")
**THE WEEKLY ACCIDENT UPDATE IS AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCT OF MASTERY FLIGHT TRAINING, INC.**
SUMMARY: Reported Raytheon/Beechcraft piston mishaps, year-end 2005:
Total reported: 226 reports
Operation in VMC: 147 reports (65% of the total)
Operation in IMC: 11 reports (5% of the total)
Weather “unknown” or “not reported”: 68 reports (30% of the total)
Operation at night: 26 reports (11% of the total)
Fatal accidents: 38 reports (17% of the total)
“Serious” injury accidents (not involving fatalities): 8 reports (4% of the total)
“Substantial” damage: 81 reports (35% of the total)
Aircraft “destroyed”: 34 reports (15% of the total)
Mishaps during dual instructional flights: 15 reports (7% of the total)
(Note: FAA preliminary reports no longer identify the purpose of the flight involved in mishap. Consequently the number and percentage of Beech mishaps that occur during dual instruction will become less and less accurate over time. Since the late 1990s the percentage of Beech mishaps that take place during dual flight instruction has remained very consistently about 10%).
Recent registration (within previous 12 months): 52 reports (23% of the total)
By Aircraft Type:
Be35 Bonanza 63 reports
Be36 Bonanza 40 reports
Be55 Baron 29 reports
Be58 Baron 20 reports
Be33 Debonair/Bonanza 18 reports
Be23 Musketeer/Sundowner 16 reports
Be24 Sierra 10 reports
Be76 Duchess 10 reports
Be95 Travel Air 6 reports
Be19 Sport 4 reports
Be60 Duke 4 reports
Be18 Twin Beech 3 reports
Be65 Queen Air 2 reports
Be77 Skipper 2 reports
Be17 Staggerwing 1 report
Be50 Twin Bonanza 1 report
PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION OF CAUSE (all subject to update per NTSB findings):
LANDING GEAR-RELATED MISHAPS (81 reports; 36% of the total)
Gear collapse (landing)
43 reports (two Be18s; three Be24s; five Be33s; seven Be35s; five Be36s; nine Be55s; six Be58s; two Be60s; two Be76s; two Be95s)
Gear up landing
23 reports (two Be33s; ten Be35s; three Be36s; five Be55s; two Be58s; Be65)
Landing gear: known mechanical malfunction
6 reports (two Be24s; Be35; two Be36s; Be58)
Gear collapse (touch and go)
3 reports (Be24; Be35; Be76)
Gear collapse—known inadvertent pilot activation of gear on ground
3 reports (Be35; two Be36s)
Gear collapse (electrical failure)
1 report (Be35)
Gear up landing (electrical failure)
1 report (Be36)
Gear collapse on landing following practice manual extension
1 report (Be24)
ENGINE FAILURE (40 reports; 18% of the total)
Engine failure in flight
13 reports (three Be23s; Be33; four Be35s; three Be36s; Be76; Be95)
Fuel starvation
5 reports (Be23; Be33; two Be35s; Be50)
Engine failure on takeoff
5 reports (Be23; Be35; Be36; two Be55s)
Fuel exhaustion
5 reports (Be19; Be23; Be35; Be36; Be77)
Engine failure on approach/in traffic pattern
4 reports (Be33; two Be35s; Be36)
Engine failure in flight—catastrophic oil loss
2 reports (Be23; Be33)
Engine failure in flight—piston/cylinder failure
1 report (Be36)
Engine failure in flight—improper maintenance, shop rag in oil sump
1 report (Be77)
Engine failure in flight—improper maintenance, catastrophic oil loss
1 report (Be36)
Engine failure—fuel contamination
1 report (Be35)
Engine failure on takeoff—loss of oil pressure
1 report (Be36)
Engine fire in flight
1 report (Be58)
IMPACT-RELATED FAILURE ON LANDING (42 reports; 18% of the total)
Loss of directional control on landing
14 reports (Be17; Be18; two Be19s; two Be23s; three Be24s; two Be35s; two Be36s; Be55)
Impact with animal on runway during landing
6 reports (two Be35s; Be36; two Be58s)
Landed long
5 reports (Be23; Be33; Be35; Be58; Be60)
Landed short
5 reports (Be23; two Be33s; Be35; Be36)
Impact with obstacle during normal landing
3 reports (Be23; Be35; Be36)
Hard landing/Gear collapse—fixed gear airplane
2 reports (Be19; Be23)
Hard landing—gear collapse
2 reports (Be36; Be58)
Hard landing—loss of directional control
2 reports (Be58; Be76)
Runway excursion on landing—attempting to avoid animal on runway
1 report (Be35)
Impact with obstacle on final approach—night landing
1 report (Be76)
Propeller strike on landing
1 report (Be33)
MISCELLANEOUS CAUSES (17 reports; 8% of the total)
Taxied into object/pedestrian/other aircraft
7 reports (two Be35s; Be55; two Be58s; two Be76s)
Bird strike
2 reports (Be55; Be58)
Struck by taxiing aircraft
2 reports (Be35; Be55)
Turbulence encounter—hit head on headliner
1 report (Be36)
Control system failure
1 report (Be35)
Fire/explosion in flight
1 report (Be55)
Blown tire on landing
1 report (Be60)
Impact with terrain—downdraft/microburst
1 report (Be23)
Midair collision on final approach
1 report (Be33)
IMPACT WITH OBJECT DURING TAKEOFF (15 reports; 7% of the total)
Loss of control on takeoff/initial climb
4 reports (Be23; Be24; Be36; Be55)
Impact with obstacle following takeoff/unable to attain climb
3 reports (Be35; two Be36s)
Loss of control during takeoff—crosswind/wind shear
2 reports (both Be36s)
Runway overrun
2 reports (Be33; Be35)
Runway excursion—blown tire on takeoff
1 report (Be58)
Impact with object/animal during takeoff
1 report (Be58)
Propeller strike during aborted takeoff
1 report (Be95)
Impact with object during takeoff—wind shear
1 report (Be24)
CAUSE UNKNOWN (14 reports; 6% of the total)
Crash/Unknown
10 reports (five Be35s; three Be36s; Be58; Be95)
Takeoff/Unknown
2 reports (Be36; Be55)
Landing/Unknown
1 reports (Be58)
Approach/Unknown
1 report (Be55)
CONTROLLED FLIGHT INTO TERRAIN (10 reports; 5% of the total)
Controlled flight into terrain—cruise flight/mountainous terrain
4 reports (Be35; Be55; Be65; Be95)
Impact with terrain/water—maneuvering on one engine
2 reports (Be55; Be76)
Descent below IFR approach minimum altitude
2 reports (both Be36s)
Attempted visual flight in IMC—mountainous terrain
1 report (Be35)
Controlled descent into terrain—dark night
1 report (Be33)
STALL/SPIN (6 reports; 3% of the total)
Stall during go-around/missed approach
2 reports (Be33; Be36)
Stall/Spin during turn in visual traffic pattern
1 report (Be35)
Stall/Spin on takeoff
1 report (Be55)
Stall on takeoff—strong tailwind/possible microburst conditions
1 report (Be35)
Stall on final approach
1 report (Be36)
LOSS OF CONTROL IN FLIGHT (4 reports; 2% of the total)
Loss of control—attempted single-engine go-around
2 reports (Be55; Be76)
Loss of control--disorientation during approach in IMC
1 report (Be35)
Loss of control--thunderstorm penetration
1 report (Be36)
AIRFRAME ICE
In-flight ice accumulation—mountainous terrain
1 report (Be35)
IN-FLIGHT VIBRATION/CONTROL FLUTTER
In-flight vibration of unknown origin
1 report (Be35)
Please accept my sincere personal condolences if you or anyone you know was involved in a mishap. I welcome your comments, suggestions and criticisms. Fly safe, and have fun!
Thomas P. Turner
Mastery Flight Training, Inc.
There's much more aviation safety information at www.thomaspturner.com.