Beechcraft A36 N9SH

Summary

On 18 July 2010 at about 21:02 local time, a Beechcraft A36 registered N9SH, operated by Reed Hatkoff, was involved in an accident near Phoenix, Arizona, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

18 July 2010 at 21:02

Classification

Accident

Location

Phoenix, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Phoenix Deer Valley Airport (DVT)

Coordinates

33.6881, -112.0825

Aircraft

Beechcraft A36

Registration

N9SH

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Reed Hatkoff

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Phoenix → Phoenix

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dawn

NTSB number

WPR10LA357

1 person was seriously injured.

A loss of engine power during descent due to fuel starvation that resulted from the pilot's mismanagement of the fuel system.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported flying for about an hour at 10,000 feet during a maintenance test flight to break in newly installed cylinders. The pilot reduced altitude to continue operating for another hour. As he changed altitude, he switched fuel tanks. Shortly after switching tanks, the engine lost power. During the forced landing, the airplane hit an automobile. Following the accident, about 1.5 gallons of fuel were recovered from the right fuel tank, and the left fuel tank was found empty. The right fuel tank was cracked and had leaked some fuel; the left fuel tank was not damaged. During the postaccident engine examination, no mechanical failures or malfunctions were revealed that would have precluded normal operation. The loss of engine power was most likely due to the pilot’s mismanagement of the fuel, resulting in fuel starvation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.