# NTSB LAX05LA209: Beechcraft K35, N3067C, Apple Valley, CA, June 18, 2005 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: June 18, 2005, 07:30 local (14:30 UTC) - Place: Apple Valley, CA - Coordinates: 34.75, -117 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.7500&lon=-117.0000&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 1 minor, 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report April 25, 2007 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Raytheon Aircraft, Federal Aviation Administration Riverside FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 61749 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX05LA209 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/61749/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX05LA209 ## Probable cause fuel starvation due to the pilot's inadequate in-flight fuel system management and failure to set the fuel selector valve to a tank containing fuel. A factor was the ditch that the aircraft encountered. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(partial) - nonmechanical, cruise - in-flight planning/decision - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - fluid,fuel - starvation (cause) - fuel tank selector position - improper, pilot in command (cause) - fuel supply - not selected, pilot in command (cause) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - On ground/water collision with object, landing - roll - object - pole (contributing factor) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - roll - terrain condition - ditch - landing gear,nose gear - overload - landing gear,nose gear - collapsed ## Analysis The airplane's wing collided with a post during a forced landing on a road after a loss of engine power, and the airplane went into a ditch. The pilot was on a cross-country flight when the engine began sputtering. The pilot thought that he had a fuel problem. The fuel pressure began to vary. The pilot switched fuel tanks, turned on the auxiliary fuel pump, and richened the mixture. He noted that the fuel flow stabilized briefly, and then it started varying again. Shortly thereafter, the engine quit, and the pilot made a forced landing on a dirt road. At that time, he turned the fuel pump off, and made the landing with the gear down and flaps extended. The airplane touched down successfully on the main landing gear. During the rollout, a wing clipped a metal post, which spun the airplane into a ditch. The nose wheel collapsed, and the wing sustained substantial damage. Recovery personnel drained 15 gallons of fuel from each of the main wing tanks. They found no fuel in the auxiliary fuel tanks, which can contain a maximum of 19 gallons of usable fuel according to the manufacturer's systems description. Post accident examination revealed that the fuel selector was in the auxiliary fuel tank position. The fuel boost pump was in the emergency or HI position. A fuel supply was plumbed into the left wing fuel inlet. The engine was started, and it ran smoothly at various power settings for 15 minutes, including several times at full power. The engine displayed good response to throttle movements and exhibited no hesitation. ## Factual narrative On June 18, 2005, about 0730 Pacific daylight time, a Beech K35, N3067C, collided with a pole during a forced landing near Apple Valley, California. The owner was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The commercial pilot sustained minor injuries, and the passenger was not injured. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The personal cross-country flight departed Deer Valley Airport (DVT), Phoenix, Arizona, about 0530 mountain standard time, with a planned intermediate destination of Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT), Fresno, California, for fuel and a final destination of Medford, Oregon. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. In a written statement, the pilot stated that the engine began sputtering, and he thought that he had a fuel problem. The fuel pressure began to vary. The pilot switched fuel tanks, turned on the auxiliary fuel pump, and richened the mixture. He was receiving flight following so he notified air traffic control (ATC) of the problem, and they vectored him to Apple Valley Airport. He noted that the fuel flow stabilized briefly, and then started varying again. Shortly thereafter, the engine quit, and the pilot advised ATC that he could not make it to Apple Valley and would have to make a landing on a dirt road. At that time, he turned the fuel pump off, and made the landing with the gear down and flaps extended. The airplane touched down successfully on the main landing gear. During the rollout, a wing clipped a metal post, which spun the airplane into a ditch. The nose wheel collapsed, and the wing sustained substantial damage. Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board, Beech, and Teledyne Continental Motors examined the airplane at Air Transport, Phoenix, Arizona. Recovery personnel said that, when they recovered the airplane, it had 15 gallons of fuel in each of the main wing tanks. They found no fuel in the auxiliary fuel tanks, which can contain a maximum of 19 gallons of usable fuel according to the manufacturer's systems description. Recovery personnel changed the propeller. Investigators removed the upper spark plugs and found no carbon or residue in them. All of the electrodes were circular. They pressure checked the fuel feed lines and the fuel vent lines in the wings, and all were open. They drained the fuel tank selector body, and observed a blue fluid that smelled similar to aviation fuel. They opened the engine cowling, and observed no damage in the engine bay. They removed and checked the engine oil dipstick. It was at the full mark, and the oil appeared clean without contamination. The engine inlet air filter was undamaged although dusty, with a nickel sized rock embedded between the inlet grating and the filter. In the cockpit, the fuel selector was in the auxiliary fuel tank position. The fuel boost pump was in the emergency or HI position. Recovery personnel plumbed a fuel supply into the left wing fuel inlet. They started the engine, and ran it at various power settings for 15 minutes. The engine ran smoothly at all settings. During the engine test run, the maximum rpm was 2,700 and the idle was 750 rpm. During a magneto functional test, the right magneto dropped 100 rpm while the drop on the left magneto was 75 rpm. The engine displayed good response to the throttle and exhibited no hesitation. The engine oil pressure during the engine test run was 80 pounds per square inch. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N3067C](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N3067C), registered now, S/N D-5731, built 1958 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Beechcraft K35 - Registry model: [Beech K35](https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-k35) (registry code 1151524) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental I0-470 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-i0-470-series) (registry code 17027, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: D-5731 - Airframe hours: 7008.91 - Engines: Continental IO-470-C 250 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, November 1, 2004, 45.96 hours before - Departed: DVT, Phoenix, AZ - Destination: FAT, Fresno, AZ - Airport: APV, Apple Valley ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 59; injuries: minor; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 3, with waivers/limitations; last flight review October 1, 2004; seat: left; flight hours: 835 total, 56 in this make and model, 659 as pilot in command, 5 in the last 90 days, 3 in the last 30 days, 2 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 250° at 17 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 61 °F, dew point 43 °F - Altimeter: 29.87 inHg - Observed at: DAG, 6 nm away ## Other investigations on N3067C (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 DEN68A0043](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN68A0043), Mar 5, 1968: Beech K35 (N3067C), Crownpoint, NM, substantial damage 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.