Beechcraft 77 N991AB

Summary

On 15 December 2022 at about 22:05 local time, a Beechcraft 77 registered N991AB was involved in an accident near Lihue, Hawaii, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 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

15 December 2022 at 22:05

Classification

Accident

Location

Lihue, Hawaii, United States

Nearest airport

Lihue Airport (PHLI)

Coordinates

21.9707, -159.3518

Aircraft

Beechcraft 77

Registration

N991AB

Category

Airplane

Year built

1980

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC23LA009

1 person was seriously injured.

The airplane’s exceedance of its critical angle of attack after encountering a downdraft during departure, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and impact with terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, during departure, he could not climb the airplane, which stalled toward the end of the runway and descended into terrain at the edge of the airport property, resulting in substantial damage to both wings and fuselage. The pilot of a commercial airplane that departed shortly before the accident airplane reported poor climb performance during departure. A review of the topography for the runway that was used for both takeoffs indicated the possibility of downdraft conditions on the departure path of the runway. It is likely that the airplane encountered a downdraft during departure that exceeded the climb capability of the airplane and resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack, entering an aerodynamic stall, and descending into terrain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.