Accident Beechcraft K35 Bonanza N551PK,
ASN logo
ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 177506
 
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information. If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.

Date:Wednesday 12 May 2004
Time:13:10
Type:Silhouette image of generic BE35 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Beechcraft K35 Bonanza
Owner/operator:Private
Registration: N551PK
MSN: D-5797
Year of manufacture:1959
Total airframe hrs:5811 hours
Engine model:Continental IO-470-C
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage: Substantial
Category:Accident
Location:Lake Worth, FL -   United States of America
Phase: Landing
Nature:Private
Departure airport:Fort Lauderdale, FL (FXE)
Destination airport:Lake Worth, FL (LNA)
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The pilot stated that while flying the downwind leg at Palm Beach County Park Airport, he conducted a pre-landing checklist, which included extending the landing gear and lowering the flaps. After leveling the wings following the turn from downwind leg to the base leg, he attempted to increase power but the engine was unresponsive. He said that upon realizing the engine was not producing power, he also noticed the fuel flow was low. At this point, he cycled the magneto switch, switched fuel tanks, turned on the fuel boost pump to "low" but there was no change in the fuel flow. He then turned toward the airport, realized he was not going to make the runway, and elected to land on a golf course driving range north of the airport. The pilot further stated the landing went well but during the landing rollout, the aircraft hit a berm and nosed over coming to rest inverted. During recovery of the airplane, the main fuel tanks were found to contain about 15 gallons of fuel in each. The auxiliary tanks contained about 5 gallons of fuel in each and the right tip tank contained 1 gallon of fuel. The left tip tank had been damaged by impact forces and contained no fuel. The fuel selector, magneto switch, and electrical master switch were found in the off position. Fire department personnel reported they turned off the fuel selector, magneto, and electrical master switches after the accident. No contamination was found in the airframe and engine fuel systems. All fuel lines were unobstructed. After recovery of the airplane, which required removal of the airplanes wings, a fuel supply was connected to the airplane and engine fuel system. The engine was then started and operated to full power with no evidence of failure or malfunction. During the engine test run the electric fuel boost pump was moved from the off position to the low position. The engine began to fail. The boost pump was turned off and the engine regained power. The electric fuel boost pump was tested and found to produce pressures within the normal range in the low and high positions. The flight manual for the Beech K35 states that the electric boost pump is used for starting and emergency operation after failure of the engine driven fuel pump.
Probable Cause: The loss of engine power for undetermined reasons which resulted in a forced landing, collision with a berm during landing rollout, and the airplane nosing over.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: MIA04LA082
Status: Investigation completed
Duration:
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20040520X00618&key=1

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
02-Jul-2015 15:55 Noro Added
21-Dec-2016 19:30 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
07-Dec-2017 18:01 ASN Update Bot Updated [Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]

Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description

The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:

CONNECT WITH US: FSF on social media FSF Facebook FSF Twitter FSF Youtube FSF LinkedIn FSF Instagram

©2024 Flight Safety Foundation

1920 Ballenger Av, 4th Fl.
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
www.FlightSafety.org