Beechcraft 58 N4494A

Summary

On 8 December 2017 at about 01:00 local time, a Beechcraft 58 registered N4494A was involved in an accident near St. Croix, United States. 5 people were on board and 5 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

8 December 2017 at 01:00

Classification

Accident

Location

St. Croix, United States

Nearest airport

Henry E Rohlsen (STX)

Coordinates

18.3363, -64.8972

Aircraft

Beechcraft 58

Registration

N4494A

Category

Airplane

Year built

1970

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

St. Croix → St. Thomas

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

ERA18FA046

5 people died.

The non-multiengine rated pilot's failure to maintain airplane control during a single-engine approach. Contributing to the accident was a total loss of engine power on the left engine due to detonation for reasons that could not be determined based on the available information.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Before departing on the night cross-country flight in the multi-engine airplane with four passengers, the private pilot, who did not hold a multi-engine rating, called a flight instructor/mechanic, because he was having problems starting the left engine. The flight instructor/mechanic advised the pilot to wait until the next day; however, the pilot chose to depart. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot advised air traffic control that the engines were "not running right" and that he needed to return to the airport. The airplane was cleared to land, but impacted terrain about 500 ft short of the runway threshold and was destroyed by impact forces and a postcrash fire. The disposition of the wreckage suggested a steep descent and impact attitude with little horizontal motion, consistent with a loss of control. Examination of the left engine found that the No. 2 cylinder piston exhibited severe detonation damage, which likely resulted in the subsequent catastrophic failure of the left engine; however, the reason for the detonation could not be determined. While the pilot lacked a multiengine rating, the investigation was unable to determine his prior multiengine flight experience.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.