Beechcraft 35 N5345E

Summary

On 1 July 2004 at about 19:02 local time, a Beechcraft 35 registered N5345E was involved in an accident near Morgantown, West Virginia, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 July 2004 at 19:02

Classification

Accident

Location

Morgantown, West Virginia, United States

Nearest airport

Morgantown Municipal Airport (MGW)

Coordinates

39.6428, -79.9161

Aircraft

Beechcraft 35

Registration

N5345E

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Morgantown → Somerset

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC04LA151

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's improper fuel management, which resulted in fuel starvation and a subsequent loss of engine power.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot departed with the right fuel tank full (approximately 17 gallons) and the left tank about half full. He flew for approximately 30 minutes with the right fuel tank selected, and landed at his destination airport. The pilot departed again with the right tank selected for the return flight. As the airplane reached the end of the runway, the engine began to sputter and then lost power. The pilot performed a forced landing to a field, during which the airplane impacted trees. The pilot reported that the airplane burned more fuel when the right tank was selected, since unused fuel from the engine is returned to the left fuel tank. The pilot stated that the cause of the accident was, "fuel starvation and simple pilot error." Examination of the airplane revealed the right fuel tank was ruptured, and the left fuel tank was approximately half full. The fuel lines from the fuel pump to the fuel injector, and the line from the fuel distributor to the cylinders contained no fuel. The fuel line from the fuel selector to the fuel pump contained residual fuel only. According to the Beechcraft BE-35 Pilot's Operating Handbook, "The pressure type carburetor returns about 3 gallons per hour of excess fuel to the left main cell regardless of the cell selected." The fuel burn rate depicted in the Performance section of the Handbook was approximately 9.5 gallons per hour.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.