SEA07CA008

NTSB accident investigation · Beech E-55 · Ontario, OR · October 12, 2006

Accident · Minor injuriesData collectionFinal report
Date
October 12, 2006, 10:30 local (16:30 UTC)
Place
Ontario, OR
Injuries
2 minor
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Enroute
Aircraft
N94LLBeech E-55
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report February 26, 2007
Report
Approved by Office Director
FAA report
20061012023869A
Case key
64695

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 dual loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot's failure to adequately determine the amount of fuel aboard the airplane during his preflight preparation. A contributing factor was the pilot's misjudgment of distance/speed during the forced landing, which resulted in a runway overrun.

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.

Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanicalCruise
2 engines
Fluid,fuel - exhaustionCause
Preflight planning/preparation - inadequatePilot in commandCause
Forced landingEmergency descent/landing
OverrunEmergency landing
Distance/speed - misjudgedPilot in commandCause
On ground/water encounter with terrain/waterLanding - roll
Terrain condition - ditch

Analysis

According to the pilot, he departed thinking the airplane had 115 gallons of fuel aboard, when it had 55 gallons of fuel aboard. The shortfall of 60 gallons was the result of a refueling request that the pilot made to a fixed base operator that did not take place and that the pilot did not verify had taken place. Fuel exhaustion occurred in both engines when the airplane was approximately 7,500 feet above an airport. The pilot spiraled down over the airport and entered the pattern for runway 14. He intentionally elected "to err on the side of landing long and not have any risk of being short." On short final, the airplane was "clearly high and fast, pretty much as expected, but not slowing, which was not expected." The airplane touched down approximately 1,000 feet prior to the end of the runway, overran the runway end, impacted a concrete irrigation channel about 350 feet from the runway end, and came to a stop approximately 200 feet past the channel.

Factual narrative

On October 12, 2006, at 1030 mountain daylight time, a Beech E-55, N94LL, experienced a loss of power in both engines and overran the runway during the ensuing forced landing at Ontario Municipal Airport, Ontario, Oregon. The airplane sustained substantial damage, and the airline transport pilot and his passenger sustained minor injuries. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal cross country flight. The flight originated from Friday Harbor, Washington, about 0730 Pacific daylight time with an intended destination of Nampa, Idaho.

According to the pilot, he departed thinking the airplane had 115 gallons of fuel aboard, when it had 55 gallons of fuel aboard. The shortfall of 60 gallons was the result of a refueling request that the pilot made to a fixed base operator that did not take place and that the pilot did not verify had taken place. Fuel exhaustion occurred in both engines when the airplane was approximately 7,500 feet above the Ontario Airport. The pilot spiraled down over the airport and entered the pattern for runway 14. He intentionally elected "to err on the side of landing long and not have any risk of being short." On short final, the airplane was "clearly high and fast, pretty much as expected, but not slowing, which was not expected." The airplane touched down approximately 1,000 feet prior to the end of the runway, overran the runway end, impacted a concrete irrigation channel about 350 feet from the runway end, and came to a stop approximately 200 feet past the channel.

Aircraft

Registration
N94LL
Reported as
Beech E-55
Category
Airplane
Serial number
TE-1080
Engines
Teledyne Continental IO-520-C7B, reciprocatingTeledyne Continental IO-520-C7B, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Departed
FHR · Friday Harbor, WA
Destination
S67 · Nampa, ID
Airport
ONO · Ontario Municipal, runway 14

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
65
Certificate
Airline transport
Airplane ratings
Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 2
Flight hours
6,665 total · 1,500 in this make and model · 115 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.