Beechcraft BE-95A N3113K

Summary

On 12 April 1999 at about 18:12 local time, a Beechcraft BE-95A registered N3113K was involved in an accident near Shawsville, Virginia, United States. 4 people were on board and 4 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

12 April 1999 at 18:12

Classification

Accident

Location

Shawsville, Virginia, United States

Coordinates

37.1295, -80.2493

Aircraft

Beechcraft BE-95A

Registration

N3113K

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Roanoke → Claxton

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

IAD99FA038

4 people died.

the pilot's inadequate preflight planning which resulted in intentional flight into known severe turbulence and the subsequent loss of control. Factors in the accident were the turbulence in instrument meteorological conditions and an airplane loaded over the maximum allowable gross weight and outside the allowable center-of-gravity range.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was briefed on two occasions by a flight service briefer and was advised of a SIGMET for moderate to severe turbulence for the departure airport area and along the airplane's proposed route of flight. The pilot acknowledged receipt of a Hazardous In-flight Alert System (HIWAS) alert for moderate to occasional severe turbulence just prior to takeoff. After departure, the tower controller stopped the airplane's climb at 6,000 feet for traffic, then told the pilot to continue the climb to 8,000 feet. The controller had received Pilot Reports (PIREPs) about turbulence and asked the pilot what he was experiencing. The controller did not receive a response, and the airplane disappeared from the radarscope after reaching an altitude of 6,700 feet. Post accident interviews with other pilots revealed they experienced severe turbulence during the same time frame in the vicinity of the accident. Computer analysis of weather data indicated a 100% probability of severe turbulence at 6,000 feet, and at 7,000 feet, vertical motions of 3,153 feet per minute indicated a severe mountain wave. A PIREP placed the base of the cloud layer at 5,400 feet and the tops at 9,500 feet. The airplane's published maximum gross weight was 4,200 pounds, with a center-of-gravity (CG) range of 80.5 inches to 86 inches aft of datum. The airplane's calculated weight at the time of the accident was 4,566 pounds, with the center of gravity calculated at 90.68 inches aft of datum.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.