# Accident 20231020020859A: Beech A36, Covelo, CA, October 20, 2023 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: October 20, 2023, 18:01 local time - Place: Covelo, CA - Airport: Round Valley Airport - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 39.7910° N, 123.2796° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.7910&lon=-123.2796&mi=10 - Aircraft: N8248K, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N8248K) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Beech A36 (registry code 1151604, https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-a36) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Continental IO-550 series (registry code 17042, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-550-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: BEECH A36 - Reported engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550-B - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 2 - Other injuries: 0 - Pilot certificates: Airline transport - Pilot flight hours: 20,000 total - NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR24FA018](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR24FA018) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20231020020859A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. AIRCRAFT DEPARTED FROM HEBER, UT (HCR) ON 10/202023 FOR A PLANNED DIRECT FLIGHT TO SHELTER COVE, CA (0Q5). BASED ON RADAR TRACKS THE AIRCRAFT FLEW OVER THE SHELTER COVE AIRPORT AND APPEARED TO DIVERT TO GARBERVILLE AIRPORT (O16) FOR UNKNOWN REASONS. SHORTLY AFTER LANDING THEY DEPARTED GARBERVILLE AND FLEW TO COVELO AIRPORT (O09) AND LANDED. THE PILOT FUELED THE AIRCRAFT WITH 90 GALLONS OF 100LL FROM THE SELF-SERVICE FUEL PUMP. AROUND 18:00 ON 10/20/2023 THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED FROM RUNWAY 28 IN A LEFT-HAND TURN. WITNESS STATED IT WAS WARM AND CLEAR WITH VERY LITTLE WIND AS CONFIRMED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AT 18:03 PDT AS TEMPERATURE 82 DEG F, WINDS 5 SSE, DEW POINT 45 F, RELATIVE HUMIDITY 27%, ALTIMETER SETTING 29.92 IN HG. THE WITNESS #1 WHO COULD OBSERVE THE END OF THE RUNWAY AND SAID THEY WERE VERY LOW AND DIDN’T SEEM LIKE THEY WERE GOING VERY FAST. THEY WERE ABLE TO SEE THE PILOT IN THE AIRCRAFT AS THEY WENT BY THEIR HOUSE IN A LEFT TURN UPON DEPARTING RUNWAY 28. WITNESS #2 WAS ABLE TO OBSERVE THE AIRCRAFT FLYING CLOSE TO THE GROUND AT APPROXIMATELY 50 FEET AND MADE A STEEP LEFT TURN OF APPROXIMATELY 80 DEGREES. WITNESS LOST VISUAL CONTACT AS THE AIRCRAFT FLEW BEHIND THEIR HOUSE. INVESTIGATION DETERMINED THE APPROXIMATE HEADING WAS APPROXIMATELY 120 DEGREES PRIOR TO IMPACTING THE GROUND. SHORTLY AFTER, THEY HEARD THE AIRCRAFT IMPACT AND HEARD SECONDARY EXPLOSIONS. THE WITNESS ATTEMPTED TO GO TO THE ACCIDENT SITE BUT IT WAS ENGULFED IN FIRE. WITNESS #2 INDICATED THEY NEVER HAVE AIRCRAFT DEPART SO LOW AND SLOW OVER THEIR HOUSE IN A LEFT TURN SINCE THIS IN THE DIRECTION OF RISING TERRAIN. NORMAL TRAFFIC PATTERN AT COVELO AIRPORT IS RIGHT HAND PATTERN AS INDICATED IN THE FAA AIRPORT SECTIONAL, PILOT’S GUIDES, AND DEPICTED ON THE SEGMENTED CIRCLE AROUND THE WINDSOCK. AT THE ACCIDENT SITE, THE AIRCRAFT IMPACT LOCATION WAS APPROXIMATELY 100 FEET UP A HILL BURNING ABOUT AN ACRE. THE FUSELAGE ORIENTATION WAS 064 DEGREES. THE AIRCRAFT CAME THROUGH THE WOODED HILLSIDE AT AN EXTREMELY HIGH ANGLE REMOVING LIMBS AND TOPPLING ONE TREE IN A WING LOW ATTITUDE. FIRE CONSUMED MOST OF THE AIRCRAFT, EXCEPT THE ENGINE. TWO TEXTRON AVIATION AIR SAFETY INVESTIGATORS WERE ABLE TO CONFIRM FLIGHT CONTROL CONTINUITY ON SCENE. NO ELECTRONIC RECORDING DATA WAS SALVAGEABLE. THE ENGINE WAS REMOVED BY THE AIRCRAFT RECOVERY COMPANY FOR FURTHER ANALYSIS BY THE MANUFACTURER, NTSB, AND FAA. 12/07/2023, ENGINE ANALYSIS WAS PERFORMED BY NTSB, TEXTRON AVIATION, AND FAA IIC. THE ENGINE WAS INTACT BUT WAS DAMAGED BY THE FIRE. ROTATED THE CRANK AND WAS ABLE TO VERIFY ROTATABLE COMPONENTS INTACT. DEBRIS IN THE FUEL INJECTORS BUT DETERMINED IT WAS THE ENGINE BEING STORED UPSIDE DOWN BY THE SALVAGE COMPANY. AN ELECTRODE WAS MISSING FROM THE #3 TOP SPARKPLUG AND #6 BOTTOM SPARK PLUG BUT DID LOOK CLEAN AND SHINY AS IT MAY HAVE BEEN FROM IMPACT. THE REMAINING PLUGS AND COLORATION LOOKED NORMAL. INVESTIGATION DID NOT REVEAL ANY PRE-IMPACT ANOMALIES. AIRCRAFT RECORDS AND PILOT’S LOG HAVE NOT BEEN LOCATED AT THIS TIME OF INVESTIGATION. ## 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 WPR24FA018](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR24FA018), Oct 21, 2023: Beech A36 (N8248K), Covelo, CA, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from trees after entering a steep banked turn for unknown reasons. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s decision to take off toward rising terrain. 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.