- Date
- May 8, 2001, 16:50 local (23:50 UTC)
- Place
- Riverside, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N3865DBeech BE77
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 15, 2002
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration - FSDO
- FAA report
- 20010508009159A
- Case key
- 52227
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
The student pilot's failure to maintain appropriate airspeed and to configure the airplane for climb-out.
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
According to the student pilot, he was practicing ground reference maneuvers over and around Lake Mathews. He said he was finishing up a few power on and power off stalls, when he thought he would practice a couple of emergency landings. He said he was familar with the procedure and had practiced them several times with no problems. The first attempt was sucessful. However, on the second attempt, he began his climb-out, flaps fully extended with full power. He was subjected to turbulence from the right, raising the right wing, at which time he lost some altitude. He regained control with aileron and rudder input. He realized that he was not climbing, instead he was losing altitude. He said that he never regained enough altitude to raise the flaps. He made a forced landing in rough terrain and thick brush, collided with a bush and nosed over.
Factual narrative
On May 8, 2001, about 1650 hours Pacific daylight time, a Beech BE77, N3865D, landed in rough terrain and brush near Riverside, California, while practicing maneuvers over and around Lake Mathews. The airplane was substantially damaged and the student pilot received minor injuries. The training flight was operated by Riverside Air Service under 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated at 1600 from Riverside.
According to the student pilot, he was finishing up a few power on and power off stalls, when he thought he would practice a couple of emergency landings. He was familar with the procedure and had practiced them several times with no problems. The first attempt was sucessful. However, on the second attempt, he began his climb-out with flaps fully extended and full power. He was subjected to turbulence from the right, raising the right wing, at which time he lost some altitude. He regained control with aileron and rudder input. He realized that he was not climbing, instead he was losing altitude. He said that he never regained enough altitude to raise the flaps. He was faced with a forced landing in rough terrain and thick brush.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3865D
- Reported as
- Beech BE77
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- WA252
- Airframe hours
- 4,951
- Engine
- Avco Lycoming O-235-L2C, 115 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Riverside Air Service
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- RAL · Riverside Muni, CA
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
- 39
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Student
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 38 total · 38 in this make and model · 13 as pilot in command · 7 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 280° at 12 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 91 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.85 inHg
- Observed at
- RAL, 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.