# Accident 20150518007219A: Beech 95-B55 (T42A), Saltville, VA, May 18, 2015

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 18, 2015, 12:38 local time
- Place: Saltville, VA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 36.9392° N, 81.7672° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.9392&lon=-81.7672&mi=10
- Aircraft: N5816S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5816S-2018-06-08) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Beech 95-B55 (T42A) (registry code 1152706, https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-95-b55-t42a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental I0-470 series (registry code 17027, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-i0-470-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BEECH 95-B55 (T42A)
- Reported engine: CONT MOTOR I0-470 SERIES
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 2,850 total, 167 in this make and model, 1 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA15FA215](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA15FA215) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20150518007219A

## Narrative

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

THE AIRCRAFT WAS IN CRUISE FLIGHT (IFR ENROUTE AND INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED) AT AN ALTITUDE OF APPROXIMATELY 9,000 FEET MSL FROM SPRUCE CREEK AIRPORT (7FL6), DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA TO MANSFIELD LAHM REGIONAL AIRPORT (MFD), MANSFIELD, OH, WHEN THE PILOT CONTACTED TRI-CITIES APPROACH CONTROL (TRI) AT 1214:05 EDT AND WAS ISSUED AN ALTIMETER SETTING OF 30.24 INCHES OF MERCURY (INHG). AT 1220:02 EDT THE TRI-CITIES APPROACH CONTROL CONTACTED THE PILOT AND REQUESTED THE COURSE HEADING, WITH THE PILOT RESPONSE OF 356 DEGREES. THE TRI CONTROLLER ADVISED THE PILOT OF AREAS OF WEATHER AT 12 O'CLOCK AND ABOUT 40 MILES - SCATTERED, TYPE AND INTENSITY UNKNOWN. THE PILOT ASKED TO DEVIATE EAST IF HE COULD AND THE TRI CONTROLLER APPROVED THE DEVIATIONS, LEFT AND RIGHT AS NECESSARY, AND TO MAINTAIN 9,000 FEET. AT 1232:16 EDT THE TRI CONTROLLER SWITCHED THE PILOT TO THE INDIANAPOLIS AIR ROUTE TRAFFIC CONTROL CENTER (ZID) AND THE PILOT ACKNOWLEDGED. THERE WERE NO FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN THE AIRCRAFT AND AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL. FAA RADAR REFLECTED AN EASTERLY DEVIATION. AT 1234:00 EDT TO 1234:10 EDT THE AIRCRAFT DESCENDED FROM 8500 MSL TO 7200 FEET MSL, BEFORE RADAR CONTACT DATA WAS LOST. AN ALNOT WAS ISSUED AND ON MAY 19, 2015 AT 1230 EDT, THE AIRCRAFT WAS DISCOVERED NEAR SALTVILLE, VA ON FLAT TOP MOUNTAIN AT AN ELEVATION OF APPROXIMATELY 4,400 FEET. THE PILOT AND PASSENGER WERE FATALLY INJURED. THE WRECKAGE WAS EXAMINED ON SCENE AND ALL MAJOR COMPONENTS WERE ACCOUNTED FOR. THE AIRCRAFT WAS FRAGMENTED OUTSIDE THE IMPACT CRATER FOR APPROXIMATELY 50 FEET ON AN APPROXIMATE 192 DEGREE HEADING. THE PROPELLERS WERE SEPARATED FROM THEIR RESPECTIVE ENGINES AND ALL BLADES EXHIBITED DAMAGE CONSISTENT WITH ROTATION ON IMPACT. ONE TREE TRUNK EXHIBITED DAMAGE CONSISTENT WITH ROTATIONAL PROPELLER CONTACT. THE SUBSEQUENT OFFSITE WRECKAGE EXAMINATION CONDUCTED BY THE NTSB, AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURER, AND ENGINE MANUFACTURER DID NOT NOTE ANY MECHANICAL ANOMOLIES. THE WEATHER RECORDED AT 1235 EDT AT TAZEWELL COUNTY AIRPORT (JFZ), WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY 8 MILES NORTH OF THE SITE, WAS WIND FROM 210 DEGREES AT 5 KNOTS, 10 MILES VISIBILITY, SCATTERED CLOUDS AT 2,900 FEET AGL, SCATTERED CLOUDS AT 3,600 FEET AGL, A BROKEN CEILING AT 8000 FEET AGL, TEMPERATURE 24 DEGREES CELSIUS, DEW POINT TEMPERATURE 18 DEGREES CELSIUS, AND ALTIMETER 30.26 INHG.

## 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 ERA15FA215](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA15FA215), May 18, 2015: Beech 95 B55 (T42A) (N5816S), Saltville, VA, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s flight into developing rain showers and updrafts, which resulted in a loss of airplane control and collision with terrain. Contributing to the accident were the pilot’s continued flight…

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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