Beechcraft E55 N3FJ
3 April 2005 · Fort Collins, Colorado, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 3 April 2005 at about 20:50 local time, a Beechcraft E55 registered N3FJ was involved in an accident near Fort Collins, Colorado, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 20:50
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Fort Collins, Colorado, United States
- Nearest airport
- Fort Collins-Downtown Airport (3V5)
- Coordinates
- 40.5883, -105.0422
- Aircraft
- Beechcraft E55
- Registration
- N3FJ
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Fort Collins → Fort Collins
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- DEN05FA047
People
1 person died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
the pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control. Contributing factors were the left engine loss of power for reasons undetermined, and the pilot allowing the airspeed to drop below Vmc during an attempted single-engine go-around.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
Witnesses said the engines were "running rough, cutting out, or backfiring and sputtering" as the airplane flew towards the airport. As the airplane made its landing approach, it was "high and extremely fast, one engine was windmilling, the other [engine was] running OK." He then heard an engine "spool up for a go-around." The airplane was seen to bank left about 80 degrees. At about 100-150 feet, the tail seemed to slip to the right and the plane banked further left and went inverted. The plane went into the building inverted and pointing slightly to the left. Post-impact fire destroyed the airplane and substantially damaged the building. Both engines were disassembled and inspected. Carbon-fouling of the top and bottom spark plugs from cylinders 1 and 6 on the left engine were the only discrepancies noted. Disassembly of both propellers revealed the left propeller "did not have power and was not feathered." The right propeller "was operating at moderate or high power."
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Beechcraft E55 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Aug 2001 | Beechcraft E55 | Rensselaer, Indiana, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 21 May 1997 | Beechcraft E55 | Griffin, Georgia, United States | Bobby W. Morrow | No injuries | - |
| 25 Nov 1997 | Beechcraft E55 | Gardner, Kansas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 13 Nov 1995 | Beechcraft E55 | Manassas, Virginia, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 22 Sep 2016 | Beechcraft E55 | Campinapolis, Brazil | Ricardo Romero Pires | Fatal | 4 |
| 13 Mar 2019 | Beechcraft E55 | St. Petersburg, Florida, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 Jul 2005 | Cessna 150L | Rocky Ford, Colorado, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 23 Oct 2005 | Lancair LC-40-550FG | Steamboat Spgns, Colorado, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 6 Aug 2005 | Cessna 172RG | Fort Collins, Colorado, United States | Colorado Contrails Aviation, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 7 Aug 2005 | Sheel VANS RV-8 | Fort Collins, Colorado, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 9 Sep 2005 | Cessna T207A | Telluride, Colorado, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 16 Feb 2005 | Cessna 560 | Pueblo, Colorado, United States | - | Fatal | 8 |