On August 14, 1992, a Beech A36TC (registration N1812E) operated by Judson C. Martin was involved in an aviation accident near Valentine, NE. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE AIRSPEED. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE THE WEATHER OBSCURATION AND FAILURE TO ATTAIN PROPER RUNWAY ALIGNMENT. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
During an NDB approach, a pilot sighted a hole in clouds, circled at 1,000 ft, and entered a pattern for another runway. Overshooting final, he reduced throttle and turned, but the airplane stalled, impacting the runway and coming to rest inverted.
Incident Overview
The pilot was cleared for an NDB Runway 31 approach and radar service was subsequently terminated. During the approach, the pilot observed a hole in the clouds and elected to circle the airport at 1,000 feet, entering a traffic pattern for Runway 13.
Sequence of Events
While turning from base to final, the pilot lost sight of the runway due to obscured visibility and overshot the final approach. He reported that he then reduced throttle and initiated a left turn to realign himself with the runway. During a subsequent right turn to stop the turn, the airplane stalled. The right wing contacted the runway, followed by the nose. The airplane came to rest inverted.