History of Flight
On August 14, 2008, at 1026 eastern daylight time, a Beech model 58TC (Baron), registered as N715TB, was destroyed during an in-flight collision with terrain and subsequent post-impact fire about 0.4 miles west of Union County Airport (MRT), Marysville, Ohio. The flight was conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. An instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan was on file but had not been activated. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The pilot sustained fatal injuries. The flight had departed from runway 9 at MRT just prior to the accident, with an intended destination of Fulton County Airport (FTY), Atlanta, Georgia.
Before the flight, the pilot attended a business meeting that ran long. He initially intended to depart between 0900 and 0930 and had a physician appointment that morning. He accessed the Direct User Access Terminal System (DUATS) at 0900 and filed an IFR flight plan with a proposed departure time of 0930. The airplane was fueled about 0920. The airport manager saw the pilot conducting a pre-flight inspection and noted that the engines sounded fine after start-up.
A flight instructor practicing touch-and-goes observed the pilot complete a normal run-up. The accident pilot then asked for spacing to depart ahead of another aircraft and subsequently took off. After takeoff, the instructor saw the accident airplane in a 45-degree bank with the nose pitched down about 15 degrees. The airplane appeared to overshoot the extended runway centerline, then leveled wings south of the centerline, before pitching up suddenly and rolling sharply to the left. It rolled inverted and struck the ground, followed by a post-impact fire.
A witness about 1 mile north-northwest of the airport reported the airplane passed overhead on a southbound course in straight flight with landing gear down and engines sounding normal. He noted a "bulge" on the right side, possibly an open door.
Pilot Information
The pilot, age 33, held a private pilot certificate with single-engine, multi-engine, and instrument airplane ratings. He was issued a first-class medical certificate on February 10, 2006, with no limitations. His most recent flight review was completed on November 2, 2007, along with an instrument proficiency check. According to his logbook, he had accumulated approximately 1,410.5 hours total flight time, including 40.7 hours multi-engine time (35.0 hours in the accident airplane and 5.7 hours in a Beech 95). A separate notation indicated an additional 44.5 hours flown between May and October 2007, but the aircraft type was not specified. Total flight time was approximately 1,455 hours. However, on his most recent medical application, he reported 2,200 total hours with 150 hours in the preceding 6 months.
Aircraft Information
The accident airplane was a 1980 Beech model 58TC (Baron), serial number TK-127, owned by Corporate Roof Management Systems Ltd. and registered as N715TB. It was a six-place, twin-engine aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear. It was powered by two Teledyne Continental Motors TSIO-520-WB(1) engines, each rated at 325 horsepower. The most recent annual inspection was completed on August 1, 2008, at a total airframe time of 5,218 hours. The left engine had 1,378 hours since overhaul; the right engine had 788 hours since being rebuilt. No maintenance entries followed the annual inspection.
Meteorological and Airport Information
Conditions at Ohio State University Airport, about 15 miles southeast of MRT, at 1053 were: wind 330 degrees at 7 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear skies, temperature 23°C, dew point 14°C, altimeter 29.88 inHg.
Union County Airport is a non-towered airport with a single paved runway (9/27), 4,218 feet long and 75 feet wide, at an elevation of 1,021 feet. Both runways have Precision Approach Path Indicators set to a 4-degree glide path. Standard left traffic patterns apply. A parallel taxiway lies north of the runway, and an open grass area about 250 feet wide is south of it. The airport is bordered on the west by a roadway with a rising embankment. The approach to runway 9 consists of a soybean field about 25 feet below runway elevation.
Wreckage and Impact
The accident site was in a soybean field 0.15 nautical miles southwest of the runway 9 threshold. The airplane came to rest upright on a magnetic heading of 144 degrees. The main wreckage included the fuselage, empennage, wings, and right engine. The left engine separated and came to rest about 26 feet east-northeast of the main wreckage. Both propellers separated at the crankshaft and were found about 90 feet southwest of the main wreckage. A ground impact mark 18 inches long and 3 inches deep was located about 128 feet southwest.
The forward fuselage was destroyed by impact and fire. Both wings exhibited fire damage over their entire spans. The right aileron remained attached; the left aileron had its inboard portion attached. Flaps were separated, with the right flap actuator indicating 20 degrees deflection. The right engine was dislocated but upright; the left engine completely separated. Teardown inspections of both engines revealed no pre-impact anomalies.
Both propellers were embedded face down about 8 inches into the ground, showing bending and twisting. Crankshaft fractures were consistent with overload. The empennage was intact with rudder and elevator control continuity confirmed.
Examination of the right wingtip fuel cap showed it open and attached to the filler neck; the cap locking mechanism functioned properly. The left wingtip fuel cap was locked. The cockpit door was destroyed by fire. The aft utility door was intact but discolored, with latches in the open position and the lock/unlock handle extended (unlocked). The latch plate on the forward edge of the aft door was separated.
Medical and Pathological Information
An autopsy attributed the pilot's cause of death to internal injuries due to blunt force trauma. The FAA toxicology report detected orphenadrine in blood and urine at very low levels (below the calibration curve, at 12.5 ng/mL). No ethanol or carbon monoxide was detected. The pilot's medical records documented a history of severe neck pain beginning in November 2007, treated with prednisone, oxycodone, orphenadrine, and physical therapy. In July 2008, symptoms had improved but not resolved. On the day of the accident, the pilot sought chiropractic treatment for continued neck pain, rated at 6 out of 10, with substantially limited neck range of motion. He received a chiropractic adjustment.
Tests and Research
The airplane flight manual instructed pilots to land normally if a door opened in flight, noting that a door would trail about 3 inches open and not affect general flight characteristics, though the rate of climb would be reduced. A Safety Communique issued by the manufacturer in October 1995 reminded pilots that airplanes have been flown safely with doors open and fuel caps unsecured, and advised flying normally while maintaining airspeed and landing as conditions permit. It was not determined whether the pilot was aware of this communique.