Beechcraft V35A N1566A
5 October 1997 · West Lafayette, Indiana, United States · Serious injuries
Summary
On 5 October 1997 at about 22:22 local time, a Beechcraft V35A registered N1566A was involved in an accident near West Lafayette, Indiana, 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.
The record
- Date
- at 22:22
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- West Lafayette, Indiana, United States
- Nearest airport
- Purdue University Airport (LAF)
- Coordinates
- 40.4209, -86.9200
- Aircraft
- Beechcraft V35A
- Registration
- N1566A
- Category
- Airplane
- 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
- CHI98LA006
People
1 person was seriously injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
the pilot's improper decision not to land before his airplane ran out of fuel, fuel exhaustion and the inadvertent stall.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
A witness, near the approach end of the runway, monitoring the air traffic control tower frequency, heard the tower clear the airplane to enter left traffic for runway 23, and saw the airplane enter left downwind for the traffic pattern. The witness said that the airplane 'was very low for that part of the pattern, 300 to 500 feet above ground level. The pilot told the tower that he was abeam the numbers for runway 28 and wanted to land on that runway. The airplane 'began a sharp turn, but without much bank - probably skidding - when parallel to runway 28, the plane wobbled, banked sharply left and right, and lost altitude. The airplane 'appeared to be in a landing-type attitude, not nose down.' The airplane wobbled, straightened out, then 'disappeared from sight behind hills and buildings.' Examination of the airplane's fuel tanks revealed no fuel in the right fuel tank. Six gallons of fuel were recovered from the left fuel tank. The fuel selector valve in the airplane's cockpit was positioned on the right fuel tank. No other anomalies were found with the airplane.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Beechcraft V35A accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Mar 1996 | Beechcraft V35A | Clinton, Louisiana, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 21 Sep 1996 | Beechcraft V35A-TC | Santa Ynez, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 14 Aug 1995 | Beechcraft V35A | Chimacum, Washington, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 1 Mar 1995 | Beechcraft V35A | Nassau, Bahamas | Rowland, Richard H | No injuries | - |
| 5 Jun 1999 | Beechcraft V35A | Nederland, Colorado, United States | Kenneth R. Messer | Fatal | 1 |
| 29 Jan 1995 | Beechcraft V35A-TC | Pembina, North Dakota, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Jul 1997 | Niquette PIETENPOL GN-1 | Lake Village, Indiana, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 27 Jul 1997 | Piper PA-28R-200 | Auburn, Indiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 11 Aug 1997 | Taylorcraft L2A | Shelbyville, Indiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 27 Mar 1997 | Stinson 108 | Greenfield, Indiana, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 22 Aug 1997 | Schweizer SGS 1-26E | Zionsville, Indiana, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 12 Jul 1997 | Cessna 150F | Gary, Indiana, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |