Beechcraft A36TC N1800Z

Summary

On 3 July 2006 at about 16:00 local time, a Beechcraft A36TC registered N1800Z was involved in an accident near Montrose, Colorado, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 July 2006 at 16:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Montrose, Colorado, United States

Nearest airport

Montrose Regional (MTJ)

Coordinates

38.4672, -107.8667

Aircraft

Beechcraft A36TC

Registration

N1800Z

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Rifle → Montrose

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN06FA091

2 people died.

the pilot's inadequate preflight planning/decision by not having the airplane refueled prior to takeoff, and allowing the engine to be starved of fuel because he failed to switch the fuel selector valve. A contributing factor was the flight instructor's inadequate supervision of the flight.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot, who had recently purchased the airplane, was receiving type-specific flight instruction to comply with insurance policy requirements, and had accumulated 6 hours of instruction. When the lineman checked the fuel tanks on the morning of the accident, they were half full. The pilots declined his offer to refuel. The airplane had been aloft for about 1 hour, 15 minutes, when it arrived at another airport and made 2 full-stop landings. Numerous witnesses reported hearing the engine "sputtering and coughing" and seeing the extended landing gear being retracted before the airplane struck a parked semi truck in a residential neighborhood. It exploded on impact and both the airplane and semi truck were consumed by fire. The fuel selector valve was found positioned on the left tank. The airplane was equipped with standard fuel tanks. According to the Beech A36 "Pilot's Operating Handbook," each wing tank holds 40 gallons of fuel, of which 37 gallons are useable. Performance charts indicate each takeoff and climbout would consume approximately 3.5 gallons of fuel (10.5 gallons). The airplane took off and made two takeoffs and landings prior to the loss of power. The airplane had been aloft for approximately 1.25 hours. Cruise performance charts for 10,000 feet (+20 degrees C. ISA) vary between 9.5 and 14.0 gph (gallons per hour), depending on leaning technique.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.