# NTSB CEN09LA167: Beech H35, N7942D, Grain Valley, MO, February 17, 2009 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: February 17, 2009, 09:28 local (15:28 UTC) - Place: Grain Valley, MO - Coordinates: 39.015556, -94.213333 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.0156&lon=-94.2133&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Initial climb: Loss of engine power (partial)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/342) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report May 12, 2009 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Central Region - Parties: FAA Flight Standards District Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 73361 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN09LA167 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/73361/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN09LA167 ## Probable cause The loss of engine power due to fuel starvation (mechanical). Contributing to the accident was the forced landing on unsuitable terrain. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Fuel system: fuel pumps](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022822): Aircraft › Aircraft systems · Malfunction (probable cause); cases with it: [Beech H35, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022822/cases.md?model=1151520), [All aircraft, 71 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01022822/cases.md) - [Terrain](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03021000): Environmental issues › Physical environment · Ability to respond/compensate (probable cause); cases with it: [Beech H35, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03021000/cases.md?model=1151520), [All aircraft, 267 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03021000/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Initial climb: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330); cases with it: [Beech H35, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330/sequence.md?model=1151520), [All aircraft, 994 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330/sequence.md) - [Initial climb: Loss of engine power (partial)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/342) (defining event); cases with it: [Beech H35, 3 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/342/sequence.md?model=1151520), [All aircraft, 1,858 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/342/sequence.md) - [Landing-landing roll: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) ](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470); cases with it: [Beech H35, 8 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md?model=1151520), [All aircraft, 10,189 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot said that shortly after takeoff, the aircraft's engine lost all power. The pilot attempted to restart the engine but without success. He made a forced landing in an open field. During the landing roll-out, the left wing struck a tree causing the airplane to spin around. The wing's leading edge was wrinkled, the wing spar was damaged, and the nose gear strut assembly was sheared off. The pilot reported no mechanical anomalies prior to the engine losing power. An examination of the airplane' s engine and engine driven fuel pump revealed "foreign matter under the pressure relief valve", which allowed "fuel to bypass" the carburetor and return to the fuel tank instead. ## Factual narrative On February 17, 2009, at 0928 central standard time, a Beech H35, N7942D, piloted by a commercial pilot, was substantially damaged during a forced landing to a field one mile east of runway 09 at East Kansas City Airport (3GV), Grain Valley, Missouri. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot was not injured. The cross country flight departed 3GV and was en route to Atchison, Kansas (K59). The pilot said that shortly after takeoff, the aircraft's engine lost all power. The pilot attempted to restart the engine but without success. He made a forced landing in an open field. During the landing roll-out, the left wing struck a tree causing the airplane to spin around. An on scene examination showed that the left wing was substantially damaged from the landing gear outboard. The wing's leading edge was wrinkled, the wing spar was damaged, and the nose gear strut assembly was sheared off. The pilot reported no mechanical anomalies prior to the engine losing power. An examination of the airplane' s engine and engine driven fuel pump revealed "foreign matter under the pressure relief valve", which allowed "fuel to bypass" the carburetor and return to the fuel tank instead. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N7942D](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N7942D-2013-08-23), registration cancelled 2013-08-23, S/N D-5192, built 1957 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: BEECH H35 - Registry model: [Beech H35](https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-h35) (registry code 1151520) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental O-470 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-o-470-series) (registry code 17026, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: D-5192 - Airframe hours: 5369 - Engines: continental O-470-G reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Ronald L. Strahm - Registered owner: Ronald L. Strahm - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, July 1, 2008 - Departed: 3GV, Grain Valley, MO - Destination: K59, Atchison, KS - Airport: 3GV, East Kansas City Airport ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 65; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine sea, multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 3, without waivers/limitations; last flight review December 28, 2008; seat: left; flight hours: 5,695 total, 990 in this make and model, 5,640 as pilot in command, 13 in the last 90 days, 4 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 170° at 10 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 39 °F - Observed at: lxt, 8 nm away ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20090217002099A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20090217002099A), Feb 17, 2009: Beech H35, Grain Valley, MO, Substantial damage. (-23) Pilot departed runway 9 at East Kansas City Airport (3GV). At about 200 feet AGL, the engine lost power, resulting in a forced landing about 1 mile east… 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. --- 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.