Beechcraft S35 N5828S

Summary

On 19 June 2003 at about 18:00 local time, a Beechcraft S35 registered N5828S, operated by Adolph Zwick, was involved in an accident near Weed, California, 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

19 June 2003 at 18:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Weed, California, United States

Coordinates

41.4803, -122.4550

Aircraft

Beechcraft S35

Registration

N5828S

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Adolph Zwick

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Medford → Fullerton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX03LA210

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's failure to maintain an adequate terrain/object clearance altitude.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane impacted trees while in cruise flight, and then landed uneventfully. The pilot said that during cruise flight he was distracted and looked down. When he looked up, he was in the clouds. He heard a loud "thump or bang" and immediately entered a climb. The pilot then made a planned fuel stop and discovered that the right wing leading edge was crushed, the bottom of the right wing was punctured, and the leading edge of the right stabilizer was slightly crushed. Post accident examination revealed crushing along the leading edges of the right wing and right ruddervator. A reddish brown coloration was present at the crush points. Portions of organic material, similar to trees or brush, were found lodged within the crush folds in the right wing. The METAR observations for an airport 15 miles north of the reported collision point were noting clear skies and unrestricted visibilities for 2 hours before and after the reported time of the event.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.