# Accident 20030307010419A: Beech A36, Milledgeville, GA, March 7, 2003 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: March 7, 2003, 10:45 local time - Place: Milledgeville, GA - Airport: Baldwin County Airport - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Final Approach - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 33.1542° N, 83.2406° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.1542&lon=-83.2406&mi=10 - Aircraft: N333RB, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N333RB-2003-07-24) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Beech A36 (registry code 1151604, https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-a36) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Continental IO-520 series (registry code 17032, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-520-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: BEECH A36 - Reported engine: CONT IO550* - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - Pilot flight hours: 3,300 total - NTSB investigation: [NTSB ATL03FA055](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL03FA055) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030307010419A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) ON MARCH 07, 2003, ABOUT 2245 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME, A BEECH A-36, N333RB, REGISTERED TO REM LEASING CORP, AND OPERATED BY THE PRIVATE PILOT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF TITLE 14, CFR PART 91, AND INSTRUMENT FLIGHT RULES, COLLIDED WITH TREES WHILE MAKING A GPS APPROACH TO BALDWIN COUNTY, MILLEDGEVILLE, GEORGIA. INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME AND AN INSTRUMENT FLIGHT CLEARANCE WAS OBTAINED. THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED AND THE PRIVATE-RATED PILOT WAS FATALLY INJURED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM DEXTER, MISSOURI, THE SAME DAY, AT AN UNDETERMINED TIME. TRANSCRIPTS OF RADIO COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN THE PILOT OF N333RB AND THE FAA ATLANTA APPROACH CONTROL SHOWED THE FLIGHT WAS CLEARED TO PERFORM THE GPS 10 APPROACH TO RUNWAY 10 AT BALDWIN COUNTY AIRPORT, BEGINNING AT 0259:15. AT 0312:39, THE PILOT REPORTED HE WAS PERFORMING A MISSED APPROACH. THE PILOT WAS ASKED IF HE WOULD LIKE ANOTHER APPROACH. THE FLIGHT WAS CLEARED FOR A SECOND GPS APPROACH TO RUNWAY 10 AT BALDWIN COUNTY AIRPORT, BEGINNING AT 00313:05. AT 0336:52 THE PILOT REPORTED "CAN WE SHOOT ONE MORE SIR WE HAD IT AND JUST MISSED IT." THE FLIGHT WAS CLEARED FOR A LAST GPS APPROACH TO RUNWAY 10 AT BALDWIN COUNTY AIRPORT, BEGINNING AT 0337:07. THE LAST RECORDED COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE PILOT WAS AT 0337:18, WHEN THE PILOT ACKNOWLEDGED THE CLEARANCE TO RESUME OWN NAVIGATION, MAINTAIN TWO THOUSAND FOUR HUNDRED UNTIL ESTABLISHED AND CLEARED FOR THE GPS APPROACH RWY 10. (SEE TRANSCRIPTS OF RADIO COMMUNICATIONS). RECORDED RADAR DATE FROM THE FAA ATLANTA APPROACH CONTROL SHOWED THE FLIGHT PERFORMED A GPS RUNWAY 10 APPROACH TO THE BALDWIN COUNTY AIRPORT, DESCENDING TO ABOUT 1,700 FEET MSL, APPROXIMATELY 4.06 MILES FROM THE CENTER OF THE AIRPORT, AND AT A SPEED OF 112KTS. THE FLIGHT THEN PERFORMED A MISSED APPROACH AND RETURNED TO BALDWIN COUNTY AIRPORT FOR ANOTHER GPS 10 APPROACH. ON THE SECOND GPS APPROACH THE AIRCRAFT DESCENDED TO ABOUT 1400 FEET MSL, APPROXIMATELY 5.06 MILES FROM THE CENTER OF THE AIRPORT, AND AT A SPEED OF 133 KNOTS. THE FLIGHT WAS LAST OBSERVED ON RADAR AT 03:49:07, AT 1,200 FEET MSL, AT A POSITION APPROXIMATELY 6.6 MILES FROM THE BALDWIN COUNTY AIRPORT, AND AT A SPEED OF 115 KNOTS. (SEE RECORDED RADAR DATA). WITNESSES LOCATED IN THE HOUSES ADJACENT TO THE CRASH SITE REPORTED HEARING THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDE WITH TREES, AND CRASH TO THE GROUND. THEY WENT TO THE SCENE AND FOUND THE WRECKAGE OF THE AIRCRAFT BEING CONSUMED BY FIRE. A WITNESS STATED "PULLED UP AT 11:00 FOUND PLANE BURNING NOBODY AROUND LIGHTS WERE NOT ON RUNWAY. (SEE WITNESS STATEMENT). THE PILOT HELD A U.S. FAA PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATE, ISSUED ON SEPTEMBER 9, 1989, WITH AIRPLANE SINGLE ENGINE LAND/PRIVATE PILOT, INSTRUMENT AIRPLANE/PRIVATE PILOT. THE PILOT HELD AN FAA THIRD CLASS MEDICAL CERTIFICATE, LAST ISSUED ON AUGUST 24, 2001 WITH THE RESTRICTION: MUST HAVE AVAILABLE GLASSES FOR NEAR VISION. INFORMATION ON THE AIRCRAFT IS CONTAINED IN THIS REPORT UNDER FAA FORM 8020-23. THE WEATHER INFORMATION FACILITY FOR THE MACON AREA (MCN) AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT WAS MCN 0353Z 07006KT 7SM OVC003 11/11 A3016. THE WEATHER INFORMATION FOR KMLJ-UNKN. (SEE ATC DATA). THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED IN A WOODED AREA APPROXIMATELY .75 STATUE MILES FROM THE APPROACH END OF RUNWAY 10 AT BALDWIN COUNTY AIRPORT IN MILLEDGEVILLE, GEORGIA. EXAMINATION OF THE CRASH SITE SHOWED THE AIRCRAFT FIRST COLLIDED WITH TREES ABOUT 80 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND, WHILE ON A 100-DEGREE HEADING. GROUND LEVEL AT THE INITIAL COLLISION POINT WAS ABOUT 95 FEET BELOW THE APPROACH END OF RUNWAY 32. THE AIRCRAFT WAS ESTABLISHED ON THE APPROACH AT THIS POINT. THREE TREES WERE IMPACTED IN THIS AREA AND ABOUT THE TOP 1-2 FEET OF THE TREES WERE SEPARATED. ABOUT 200 FEET PAST THE INITIAL TREE IMPACT POINT, ADDITIONAL TREES WERE IMPACTED AND THE RIGHT AND LEFT OUTBOARD WINGS WERE FOUND ON THE TREES. THE LEFT OUTBOARD WING WAS FOUND IN A TREE AT A HEIGHT OF ABOUT 46 FEET, AND THE RIGHT OUTBOARD WING WAS FOUND IN ANOTHER TREE AT A HEIGHT OF ABOUT 54 FEET. THE RIGHT WING FLAP WAS FOUND IN THIS AREA. BETWEEN 200 AND 292 FEET FROM INITIAL IMPACT, THE LEFT WING LEADING EDGE, LEFT WING TIP, SECTION OF THE RIGHT WING, PITOT TUBE, AND FUEL BLADDER MATERIAL WERE LOCATED. AT ABOUT 292 FEET FROM INITIAL TREE IMPACT, A CRATER OF ABOUT 20 FEET LONG AND 6 FEET WIDE WAS LOCATED. THE MAIN WRECKAGE AREA WHICH INCLUDED THE MAIN FUSELAGE, INBOARD WINGS, ENGINE NACELLE, ENGINE, AND PROPELLER WAS LOCATED AT ABOUT 350 FEET FROM THE INITIAL IMPACT. A POST CRASH FIRE HAD ERUPTED IN THE MAIN WRECKAGE AREA. THE FOLLOWING MANUALS WERE FOUND AT THE WRECKAGE: PILOT LOG BOOK #4, WX500 STORMSCOPE SERIES II, NORTHSTAR AVIONICS M3 GPS APPROACH NAVIGATOR, SANDEL AVIONICS SN3308 PILOT GUIDE. THE LAST RECORDED ENTRY IN PILOT LOG BOOK #4 WAS A FLIGHT REVIEW CONDUCTED ON 5/31/2001. AN INSPECTION CHECKLIST FROM THE MILLEDGEVILLE AVIATION INC SHOWS NO DEFECTS WITH THE APPROACH AND RUNWAY LIGHTS DURING THIS PERIOD. AN AIRFRAME INSPECTION WAS CONDUCTED ON MARCH 10, 2003, AT ATLANTA AIR SALVAGE BY A REPRESENTATIVE OF RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT COMPANY. IN ADDITION AN ENGINE INSPECTION WAS CONDUCTED AT THE SAME LOCATION BY A REPRESENTATIVE OF CONTINENTAL MOTORS. (SEE AIRFRAME AND ENGINE TEARDOWN REPORTS). TITLE 14 CFR PART 91.175C STATES, WHERE A MINIMUM DESCENT ALTITUDE (MDA) IS APPLICABLE NO PILOT MAY OPERATE AN AIRCRAFT AN ANY AIRPORT BELOW THE AUTHORIZED MDA UNLESS THE AIRCRAFT IS CONTINUOUSLY IN A POSITION FROM WHICH A DESCENT TO A LANDING ON THE INTENDED RUNWAY CAN BE MADE AT A NORMAL RATE OF DESCENT USING NORMAL MANEUVERS AND THE FLIGHT VISIBILITY IS NOT LESS THAN THE VISIBILITY PRESCRIBED IN THE STANDARD INSTRUMENT APPROACH BEING USED. THE PRESCRIBED VISIBILITY PUBLISHED ON THE BALDWIN COUNTY AIRPORT, GPS RUNWAY 10 APPROACH CHART IS 1 STATUTE MILE, AND THE PUBLISHED MDA IS 900 FEET MSL. AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT THE REPORTED WEATHER WAS 300 OVERCAST AND FOG, AND THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH TREES ABOUT 80 FEET MSL. (SEE APPROACH CHART). THE FINAL APPROACH FIX FOR THE GPS RUNWAY 10 IS 2000 FEET AT 5 NAUTICAL MILES. FAA ATLANTA APPROACH RADAR DATA SHOWED THE RADAR LOSING CONTACT WITH THE AIRCRAFT, FIRST AT 1700 FEET AND 4.06 MILES FROM THE AIRPORT, SECOND AT 1400 FEET AND 5.06 MILES FROM THE AIRPORT, AND LAST AT 1200 FEET AND 6.6 MILES FROM THE AIRPORT. AN M3 GPS, GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM RECEIVER WAS INSTALLED IN THE AIRCRAFT. THE UNIT WAS FOUND TO HAVE SUSTAINED FIRE DAMAGE AND COULD NOT BE EXAMINED. ## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB ATL03FA055](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL03FA055), Mar 8, 2003: Beech A-36 (N333RB), Milledgeville, GA, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's improper IFR procedure by which he failed to maintain the minimum descent altitude, and his failure to maintain obstacle clearance. A factor was low the ceiling. ## Other reports on N333RB (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 19901112049629I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19901112049629I), Nov 12, 1990: Beech A36 (N333RB), Madison, WI, Minor damage. Pilot landed with gear retracted. Gear up horn actuated by throttle control was out of adjustment. From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.