Beech N35 accident near Conicville, VA
On April 22, 2000, a Beech N35 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Conicville, VA. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- April 22, 2000
- Place
- Conicville, VA
- Aircraft
- Beech N35 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 38.740°N, 78.630°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001212X20893
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On April 22, 2000, about 1241 Eastern Daylight Time, a Beech N35, N1253Z, was destroyed during an in-flight breakup, and subsequent collision with terrain near Conicville, Virginia. The certificated private pilot and passenger were fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan was filed for the flight that originated at the Caro Municipal Airport, Caro, Michigan, destined for the Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport, Newport News, Virginia. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) transcripts of communications, the airplane was in cruise flight at 9,000 feet, when the pilot radioed air traffic control (ATC) that he had an electrical failure. The pilot then radioed ATC again and stated that he had experienced a gyro failure. The ATC controller then observed the airplane enter into a high rate of decent on the radar screen. Review of communications between the pilot and ATC, revealed that the pilot reported a loss of gyro suction at 1623:59. At 1624:50, the pilot stated, "...I guess my gyro is uh uh going right round and round" At 1625:07, the pilot stated, "as long as we stay on top we can what's the uh has anybody got any uh broken conditions uh south ah here" At 1626:33, the controller stated, "five three zulu the closest airport I'm showing with uh a broken layer is charlottesville Shenandoah and petersburg uh are both showing a overcast layer" At 1626:51, the pilot stated, "uh yeah uh gimme um ah heading to somebody
Probable cause
The pilot's in-flight decision to continue flight into IMC conditions, and his failure to maintain control of the airplane. Factors related to the accident were the failure of the vacuum pump and the pilot's lack of recent instrument time.
More accidents in VA
- Boeing 757-200, Sep 11, 2001
- Beech B99, Sep 23, 1985
- Beech 65, Sep 10, 1995
- Beech 200, Oct 24, 2004
- Piper PA-31-310, Nov 14, 1982
Browse: Virginia · Beech aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
