Beechcraft 35 N4654D

Summary

On 8 February 2018 at about 20:15 local time, a Beechcraft 35 registered N4654D was involved in an accident near Batesville, Arkansas, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

8 February 2018 at 20:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Batesville, Arkansas, United States

Nearest airport

Batesville Rgnl (BVX)

Coordinates

35.7261, -91.6475

Aircraft

Beechcraft 35

Registration

N4654D

Category

Airplane

Year built

1956

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Business

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Beaufort → Batesville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN18LA099

Nobody was injured.

An in-flight control system flutter encounter during a turbulence encounter; the reason for the flutter could not be determined.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The v-tail-equipped airplane was descending from cruise flight when it encountered turbulence, which was followed by shaking from the tail of the airplane. The pilot reduced engine power and pulled back slightly on the yoke. According to the pilot, the shaking stopped, and the airplane seemed to operate normally for the rest of the flight. After landing, the pilot noticed damage to the fuselage. Postaccident examination revealed buckling and wrinkling to the aft fuselage skins. Control cable tension could not be determined because of the fuselage damage. The balance of the ruddervators was checked and found to be within the manufacturer's specifications. Based on the available evidence, it is likely that the airplane encountered tail surface flutter in turbulent conditions.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.