Beechcraft 95-B55 N727BC

Summary

On 29 June 2008 at about 12:56 local time, a Beechcraft 95-B55 registered N727BC, operated by Bobby R. Crump, was involved in an accident near Jasper, Alabama, 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

29 June 2008 at 12:56

Classification

Accident

Location

Jasper, Alabama, United States

Nearest airport

Walker County Airport (JFX)

Coordinates

33.9036, -87.3375

Aircraft

Beechcraft 95-B55

Registration

N727BC

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Bobby R. Crump

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Jasper → Gulf Shores

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC08FA231

4 people died.

The pilot's intentional visual flight into known instrument meteorological conditions, resulting in spatial disorientation and a subsequent loss of control in flight. Contributing to the accident was the overweight and aft-center-of-gravity condition of the airplane at takeoff.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The non-instrument-rated pilot overloaded his airplane and intentionally departed into an overcast ceiling without filing a flight plan. The radar target identified as the accident airplane diverged from its intended southerly course to an S-shaped northerly track, and climbed and descended between 1,300 feet and 2,600 feet at speeds that varied between 100 knots and 160 knots. The final radar targets depicted a descent and were clustered approximately over the crash site, 1 mile west of the departure airport. Examination of the wreckage did not reveal any preimpact mechanical anomalies. According to Federal Aviation Administration Advisory Circular 61-134, one of the leading causes of general aviation accidents is "continued VFR [visual flight rules] flight into IMC [instrument meteorological conditions]... The importance of complete weather information, understanding the significance of the weather information, and being able to correlate the pilot's skills and training, aircraft capabilities, and operating environment with an accurate forecast cannot be emphasized enough... VFR pilots in reduced visual conditions may develop spatial disorientation and lose control..." It was reported that the pilot had operated under VFR in IMC on several occasions prior to the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.