# Accident 20060313004009A: Beech A36, Santa Monica, CA, March 13, 2006

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 13, 2006, 09:35 local time
- Place: Santa Monica, CA
- Airport: Santa Monica Municipal Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 34.0036° N, 118.4939° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.0036&lon=-118.4939&mi=10
- Aircraft: N16JR, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N16JR-2006-10-05) (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 IO520*
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Pilot flight hours: 300 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX06FA129](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX06FA129) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20060313004009A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED SANTA MONICA AIRPORT (SMO) ENROUTE TO BROWN FIELD-SAN DIEGO (SDM) ON AN IFR FLIGHT PLAN. THE PILOT WAS TOLD TO CONTACT THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TRACON AND SUBSEQUENTLY REPORTED AN ENGINE FAILURE AT WHICH TIME HE DECLARED AN EMERGENCY. THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO RETURN TO SMO BUR CRASHED IN THE WATER APPROXIMATELY 100 YARDS FROM THE BEACH BETWEEN THE SANTA MONICA AND VENICE PIERS. POST CRASH INVESTIGATION REVEALED A NUMBER 2 CYLINDER CONNECTING ROD SYSTEM FAILURE. THE UPPER CRANKCASE HAD FAILED IN THE AREA OF THE NUMBER 2 CYLINDER. THE LEFT AND RIGHT MAGNETOS WERE OFF THEIR MOUNTING PADS, APPARENTLY, CAUSED BY THE CONNECTING ROD SYSTEM FAILURE.

## 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 LAX06FA129](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX06FA129), Mar 13, 2006: Beech A36 (N16JR), Santa Monica, CA, substantial damage, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The failure of an aviation maintenance technician to properly torque and cotter pin the number 2 connecting rod bolts at their attach point to the crankshaft, which resulted in the separation of the…

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.

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