- Date
- July 22, 1991, 17:00 local (Jul 23, 1991, 00:00 UTC)
- Place
- Granada Hills, CA
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N77CQBeech 95-C55
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 31, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- FAA report
- 19910722029039A
- Case key
- 27015
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
A loss of directional control following an undetermined autopilot failure, during which the pilot failed to perform the emergency procedure to correct a mis-trim condition. Contributing to the accident was a perceived elevator control problem; the inability of the pilot to overpower the mis-trim condition; and a lack of understanding and training in autopilot systems and failures.
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
During a visual approach to the airport, the tower controller noticed that the airplane was high, and instructed the pilot to go around and enter a right downwind. Repeated instructions to turn to downwind brought no response until a turn was finally initiated. At that time the pilot declared an emergency, reporting that he was holding full back elevator, trying to keep the airplane in the air, and that it looked like his elevators were stuck. The airplane continued away from the airport and entered a near vertical high speed descent into a storage building. Investigation revealed both elevator trim actuators at a 4 deg nose down trim position, and evidence indicates a 40 deg down elevator position. No malfunction of the engines or flight controls were found. The autopilot system control module was destroyed. The pilot had received 7 hours of training in the airplane, and had 20 hours total time in the airplane.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N77CQ
- Reported as
- Beech 95-C55
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- TE-299
- Airframe hours
- 3,698
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-C, 285 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Bargman, Stuart
- Registered owner
- Bargman, Stuart
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 20, 1991 · 16 hours before
- Departed
- SJC · San Jose, CA
- Airport
- VNY · Van Nuys, runway 16R, 8,001 × 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
- 50
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 555 total · 20 in this make and model · 20 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- VNY, 4 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.