- Date
- August 6, 1994, 15:20 local (21:20 UTC)
- Place
- Gunnison, CO
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N6368CBeech B36TC
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 26, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19940806020519A
- Case key
- 19134
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
An inadvertent stall. Factors were a premature lift off and high density altitude.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
A witness said the airplane was 'loaded pretty full,' and used 'plenty of runway' for the takeoff roll. As soon as the airplane lifted off, however, the tail 'dropped significantly' and the airplane 'began to oscillate left and right' before striking the ground. Density altitude was a computed 10,254 feet MSL.
Factual narrative
On August 6, 1994, approximately 1520 mountain daylight time, a Beech B36TC, N6368C, was destroyed when it impacted terrain during takeoff at Gunnison, Colorado. The private pilot and the commercial pilot-rated passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed.
One witness said the airplane was "loaded pretty full," and used "plenty of runway" for the takeoff roll. As soon as it lifted off, however, the tail "dropped significantly" and the airplane "began to oscillate left and right" before striking the ground. Another witness observed the airplane after lift off and corroborated the first witness' observations.
The following is based on the pilot/operator report. The pilot sensed something was wrong as the airplane lifted off the ground. She thought the engine may have lost power as the airplane began to lose ground effect. The airplane yawed left, then right, then left again, and the right wing contacted the runway.
Density altitude was a computed 10,254 feet above mean sea level.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6368C
- Reported as
- Beech B36TC
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- EA-285
- Airframe hours
- 1,508
- Engine
- Continental TSIO-520-UB, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Taylor, F. Jay & Linda Lou K.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 28, 1993 · 56 hours before
- Destination
- RSN · Ruston, LA
- Airport
- GUC · Gunnison County, runway 6, 9,402 × 150 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 52
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,398 total · 829 in this make and model · 1,178 as pilot in command · 21 in the last 90 days · 17 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 90° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- GUC
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.