Mechanical & Engine Failure · NTSB WPR18FA219
Beech A36TC — Sylmar, CA
| Date | August 12, 2018 |
| Location | Sylmar, CA |
| Aircraft | Beech A36TC |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Approach Loss of engine power (total) |
| Pilot age | 55 |
| Pilot total time | 478 hrs · Building experience |
| Time in type | 148 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Descent/approach/glide path-Not attained/maintained - C
- Not determined-Not determined-(general)-(general)-Unknown/Not determined - C
What happened
While descending toward the destination airport for landing, the private pilot made a "mayday" call and reported to air traffic control that he had "no throttle, no engine at all." Witnesses saw the airplane flying about 30 to 40 ft above ground level when it turned and descended into a flat, open field adjacent to a highway. Wreckage examination revealed that the airplane likely stalled and impacted the terrain in a nose and left-wing low attitude. Postaccident examination did not reveal any anomalies with the flight controls that would have precluded normal operation. Thus, the pilot failed to maintain control of the airplane on approach to a relatively benign emergency landing area.
Postaccident examination did not reveal any pre-impact anomalies that would have precluded the production of rated engine power and fuel was onboard. Although impact damage precluded a test run of the engine, teardown examination revealed no anomalies with the engine or its internal components. The reason for the loss of engine power could not be determined based on the available information.