BEECH 95-B55 (T42A) — Mangum, OK

What happened

The pilot conducted a taxi test down the runway, stopped to pick up two passengers, and then departed on the local flight in the twin-engine airplane. Two witnesses reported hearing the airplane, which made them notice it flying toward them. They stated that it sounded like it "sputtered" and that they then saw the airplane nose dive into a spin. They indicated that the airplane appeared to flatten out before it collided with terrain.

Review of radar data revealed that the airplane conducted various maneuvers before the accident, including a 360-degree left turn about 5 to 6 miles from the airport. The track then turned east before turning north away from the airport. The radar data indicated that the airplane slowed as it turned north. Only one of the radar plots indicated the airplane's altitude, and it indicated that it was at 3,600 feet (about 2,000 feet above ground level [agl]).

A mechanic reported that he had performed an annual inspection on the airplane before the airplane's departure; however, the inspection was not noted in the airplane's maintenance records. The last recorded annual inspection was conducted about 17 months before the accident. Further, the postaccident examination revealed that the engines were missing their respective dataplates and that the altimeter and static system test was last conducted 25 months before the accident. Despite these discrepancies, examination of the airplane and engines did not reveal any abnormalities that would have prevented normal operation. On the basis of the evidence, the airplane slowed and then entered a  stall/spin. However, it could not be determined whether the pilot was performing an intentional maneuver or if there was a loss of engine power. According to the airplane's Pilot's Operating Handbook, stalls should be recovered no lower than 3,000 feet agl.

A review of the pilot's logbooks revealed that he had last flown a multiengine airplane about 7 months before the accident and that he had flown only about 30 hours in multiengine airplanes in the 2 years before the accident. The pilot's last flight review, which was conducted in the accident airplane, occurred about 27 months before the accident.

The pilot's toxicological report noted the presence of a therapeutic level of amitriptyline, an antidepressant, which was not declared in his medical history. It could not be determined whether the pilot was impaired by the amitriptyline or the underlying condition for which it was prescribed at the time of the accident.

An editorial "what led to it / how to avoid it" analysis for this accident is generated separately and will appear here.