Sunday, December 23, 2012

Beechcraft 95-B55 (T42A) Baron, N30WC: Accident occurred December 21, 2012 in Las Cruces, New Mexico

http://registry.faa.gov/N30WC

NTSB Identification: CEN13LA110  
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, December 21, 2012 in Las Cruces, NM
Probable Cause Approval Date: 06/24/2013
Aircraft: BEECH 95-B55 (T42A), registration: N30WC
Injuries: 1 Minor.

NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

The pilot said he added 31 gallons of fuel (for a total 0f 70 gallons) prior to departure. The fuel gauges indicated the main tanks were one-half to three-quarters full, with the remainder in the auxiliary tanks. The fuel selectors were on the main tanks. After a short 10-minute flight, the pilot executed an ILS approach in VMC. Ten miles from the runway threshold, the right engine started surging. Fuel flow fluctuated between 28 gph and 2 gph. He advanced the throttle, propeller, and mixture controls and turned on the fuel boost pumps. The airplane yawed and he identified the right engine as having lost power. He feathered the propeller and secured the engine. Shortly thereafter, the left engine lost power. The airplane impacted terrain, shearing off the left wing. The right engine was partially separated from the right wing. An FAA inspector examined the wreckage and said the right propeller was not feathered and both fuel selectors were in the auxiliary tank position. The left engine throttle, propeller, and mixture controls were full forward. The right engine throttle and propeller control were only slightly retarded, and the mixture control was in the IDLE CUTOFF position. Both fuel selectors were positioned on the auxiliary tanks, but the fuel gauge selector switch was on the main tanks.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:

The pilot's failure to properly manage the airplane's fuel, which resulted in engine failure due to fuel starvation.


On December 21, 2012, at 1650 mountain standard time, a Beech 95-B55, N30WC, impacted terrain 2 miles southeast of runway 30 while on landing approach to Las Cruces International Airport (KLRU), Las Cruces, New Mexico. The pilot, the sole occupant on board, sustained minor injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed. The local flight originated from Santa Teresa (5T6), New Mexico, approximately 1640.

According to the pilot's accident report, he added 31 gallons of fuel (for a total of 70 gallons) prior to departing K5T6. The fuel gauges indicated the main tanks were one-half to three-quarters full, with the remainder in the auxiliary tanks. The fuel selectors were on the main tanks. He executed the ILS (instrument landing system) to runway 30, in visual meteorological conditions, and was 10 miles from the runway threshold when the right engine started surging. Fuel flow fluctuated between 28 gph (gallons per hour) to 2 gph. He advanced the throttle, propeller, and mixture controls and turned on the fuel boost pumps. He said the airplane yawed 45 to 70 degrees left and right, and he identified the right engine as having lost power. He feathered the propeller and secured the engine. Shortly thereafter, the left engine lost power. The airplane impacted terrain, shearing off the left wing. The right engine was partially separated from the right wing. In a hospital interview, the pilot told a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector that he had shut down the right engine and he described the procedure he used.

The inspector told the pilot that the right propeller had not been feathered and that both fuel selectors were in the auxiliary tank position. Photographs taken by the inspector showed the left engine throttle, propeller, and mixture controls were full forward. The right engine throttle and propeller control were only slightly retarded, and the mixture control was in the IDLE CUTOFF position. Both fuel selectors were positioned on the auxiliary tanks, but the fuel gauge selector switch was on the main tanks.

In his written statement, the inspector estimated there should have had about 7 gallons in each auxiliary tank, and he computed this to be the fuel remaining after a flight from Santa Teresa to the accident site. The inspector also noted a placard affixed on the instrument panel, warning: DO NOT TAKE OFF IF FUEL QUANTITY GAGE INDICATES IN YELLOW ARC OR WITH LESS THAN 13 GALLONS IN EACH MAIN TANK.


NTSB Identification: CEN13LA110 
 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, December 21, 2012 in Las Cruces, NM
Aircraft: Beech 95-B55 (T42A), registration: N30WC
Injuries: 1 Minor.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

On December 21, 2012, at 1648 mountain standard time, a Beech 95-B55, N30WC, impacted terrain 2 miles southeast of runway 30 while on landing approach to Las Cruces International Airport (KLRU), Las Cruces, New Mexico. The pilot, the sole occupant on board, sustained minor injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed. The local flight originated from Santa Teresa, New Mexico (K5T6) approximately 1625.

According to the pilot, the right engine began running rough. He said he secured the engine and feathered the propeller. Shortly thereafter, the left engine lost power. The airplane impacted terrain, shearing off the left wing. The right engine was partially separated from the right wing.


 
Photo Credit: Scorpion


 



EL PASO, Texas - A plane crashed about two miles south of the Las Cruces airport Friday evening, according to New Mexico State Police

 The ABC-7 Investigative team learned the plane belongs to a man by the name of Sean Tommervik from East Bridgewater, Massachussetts.
 

Dona Ana County Sheriff Kelly Jameson said airport personnel called central dispatch at 5:08 p.m. after receiving radio dispatch from the pilot that they were having engine failure.

New Mexico State Police found the plane. The pilot was uninjured.

"Captain Rich Libicer said it's still unclear if the plane crashed or had an emergency landing," according to the Associated Press.  A person who lives near the scene of the accident said the beach craft plane hit a sand dune but did not catch on fire.


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