History of Flight
On August 28, 2011, at 1230 Pacific daylight time, a Beech A36 (registration N6052W) experienced a loss of engine power while on final approach to Napa County Airport in Napa, California. The pilot conducted a gear-up landing on State Route 29, approximately 1 mile east of the airport. During the landing, the airplane struck the rear end of a ground vehicle. The three occupants of the vehicle sustained minor injuries, and the vehicle was damaged. The private pilot and his passenger were uninjured. The airplane was substantially damaged.
The flight originated from South Lake Tahoe, California, around 1130. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The pilot reported departing with both fuel tanks half full (about 40 gallons total) and was airborne for about an hour. While on a 1.5-mile final for runway 24, the engine suddenly lost power. The pilot advanced the throttle, enriched the mixture, switched the fuel selector to the right tank, and activated the fuel boost pump, but the engine did not regain power. He then made a right turn and executed a gear-up landing on the highway. During the landing, the left wing leading edge struck a metal pole, creating a 1-foot-wide hole in the fuel tank, and impacted the rear of an automobile.
Aircraft and Pilot Information
The pilot, age 55, held a private pilot certificate with ratings for single-engine land and instrument airplane, issued March 13, 2010. He held a third-class medical certificate dated November 16, 2008, with a limitation for near-vision glasses. His total flight time was 1,450 hours, with 1,250 hours in the Beech A36. His most recent flight review was in September 2009.
The 6-seat, low-wing, single-engine airplane with retractable landing gear (serial number E-1497) was manufactured in 1979. It was powered by a Teledyne Continental IO-550B 300-hp engine with a Hartzell controllable-pitch propeller. The most recent annual inspection occurred on August 22, 2011, at a total airframe time of 3,982 hours. The engine tachometer read 3,986 hours at the time of the accident.
Post-Accident Examination
First responders reported no evidence of fuel in or around the left wing or leaking from either wing after the accident. Two blades of the three-bladed propeller exhibited forward blade tip curling, and the third blade tip was curled aft. During a post-accident examination by an FAA inspector, 11 gallons of fuel were recovered from the right wing. The engine was examined by a technical representative of the engine manufacturer under FAA supervision; the inspection revealed no abnormalities that would have prevented normal operation or production of rated horsepower. The fuel selector was inspected and operated normally.