ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 241180
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| Date: | Friday 11 September 2020 |
| Time: | 02:52 |
| Type: |  Beechcraft A36 Bonanza |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N74HS |
| MSN: | E-2659 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1991 |
| Engine model: | Continental IO-550-B (45) |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near McKeller-Sipes Airport (MKL/KMKL), Jackson, TN -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Dickson County Municipal Airport (M02), TN |
| Charles W. Baker Airport, TN (2M8) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On September 11, 2020, about 0252 central daylight time, a Beech A36, N74HS, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near McKellar-Spies Regional Airport (MKL), Jackson, Tennessee. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.
The airplane was enroute during a night cross-country flight when the pilot reported to air traffic control that he was low on fuel and needed to divert to a nearby airport. The controller approved the pilot’s request, and there were no additional communications from the pilot. The wreckage of the airplane was later located in a wooded area near the divert airport. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of fuel at the accident scene and no evidence of pre-accident anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane before the accident.
Fuel computations based on refueling records, previous flights, and estimated fuel burn rates showed the engine likely consumed all usable fuel onboard. Additionally, data downloaded from an onboard engine monitor recorded the fuel flow decreasing to zero about 6 minutes before the data ended.
The pilot’s report to air traffic control that he was low on fuel, the onboard engine monitor data showing fuel flow drop to zero, and the lack of fuel at the accident scene all indicate the pilot departed with insufficient fuel onboard to complete his planned flight. This resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion and impact with terrain.
The pilot’s toxicology showed that ethanol was present in his femoral blood at nearly three times the regulatory limit for flying. Ethanol was also present in the pilot’s vitreous indicating that the ethanol was likely from ingestion and representative of his blood alcohol level at the time of the crash. Vitreous is relatively unsusceptible to postmortem ethanol production, and the measured proportion of ethanol in vitreous compared to femoral blood fits a typical pattern seen after consumed ethanol is absorbed. The pilot’s decision to fly with insufficient fuel to reach his destination was consistent with the known impairing effects of ethanol on awareness, decision making, and performance. Thus, effects from ethanol likely contributed to the accident.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s inadequate preflight fuel planning, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's impairment due to alcohol.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://www.wkrn.com/news/tennessee-news/pilot-killed-in-madison-county-plane-crash/
https://www.localmemphis.com/article/news/madison-county-tennessee-plane-crash-one-killed/522-4a1dfd09-2bcf-46f0-abf6-d7100b5b1471
NTSB
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N74HS/history/20200911/0505Z/M02/KMKL
https://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=N74HS
Location
Images:
Photos: NTSB
Media:
NTSB is investigating the September 10, 2020 crash in Jackson, TN involving a Beech BE36 aircraft. The NTSB is not traveling to the scene of the crash at this time.
— NTSB_Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) September 11, 2020
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 11-Sep-2020 17:04 | Captain Adam | Added |
| 11-Sep-2020 21:00 | Geno | Updated [Time, Registration, Cn, Operator, Source, Embed code] |
| 12-Sep-2020 06:00 | Anon. | Updated [Date, Time, Location, Narrative] |
| 13-Sep-2020 16:44 | Anon. | Updated [Registration, Source] |
| 05-Oct-2022 20:36 | Captain Adam | Updated [Time, Location, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, Accident report, Photo] |
| 05-Oct-2022 20:37 | Captain Adam | Updated [Photo] |
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