- Date
- March 24, 2002, 16:50 local (22:50 UTC)
- Place
- Bayou La Batre, AL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N18891Beech C-24R
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 28, 2002
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA FSDO
- FAA report
- 20020324004159A
- Case key
- 54389
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 pilot's failure to maintain aircraft directional control while executing a go-around, resulting in an inflight collision with trees.
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 pilot, his landing attempt resulted in a high flare, hard touchdown, and bounce. His attempt to go around resulted in a left drift off the left side of the runway and collision with adjacent trees due to his failure to attain the proper climb speed and to maintain directional control.
Factual narrative
On March 24, 2002, about 1650 central standard time, a Beech C-24R, N18891, registered to Delta Beech LLC, operating as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight, crashed in the vicinity of Bayou La Batre, Alabama. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane incurred substantial damage, and the private-rated pilot and a passenger were not injured. The flight originated from Mobile, Alabama, about 20 minutes before the accident.
According to the pilot, his landing attempt on Roy E. Ray Airport's runway 18 resulted in a high flare and hard touchdown and bounce. He decided to execute a go-around, but did not retract flaps to a normal takeoff setting. He stated that the aircraft would not climb, simply stayed in ground effect, and drifted off the left side of the runway into a small stand of brush and trees. He and his passenger were not injured, and egressed the wrecked aircraft under their own power. The pilot stated there were no abnormalities or malfunctions of the aircraft.
According to an FAA inspector, the pilot-in-command allowed the aircraft to get too slow on approach, resulting in a hard landing. During the pilot's resultant go-around attempt, he lost control of the aircraft, drifted left, and impacted trees.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N18891
- Reported as
- Beech C-24R
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- MC-515
- Airframe hours
- 5,088
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-A1B6, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Delta Beech, LLC
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 15, 2001 · 52 hours before
- Departed
- BFM · Mobile, AL
- Destination
- 5R7 · Bayou La Batre, AL
- Airport
- 5R7 · Roy E. Ray, Bayou La Batre, runway 18, 2,000 × 150 ft, grass/turf
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
- 43
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 477 total · 167 in this make and model · 450 as pilot in command · 13 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 0° at 0 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.05 inHg
- Observed at
- KBFM, 12 nm away
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 2, 2002, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 390 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N18891 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.