Accident Details
On February 2, 2018, at about 1105 Pacific standard time, a Beech 95, registration N128W, was substantially damaged in an accident at the North Las Vegas Airport (VGT), Las Vegas, Nevada. The flight instructor and a student pilot were on board and were not injured. The aircraft was operating under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as an instructional flight.
Flight Sequence
According to the flight instructor, the flight had been in progress for about 2 hours before the accident segment. During that segment, they were inbound on a simulated engine-out approach for the instrument landing system and were instructed to circle left downwind for runway 30L. The right throttle was set to 1,200 rpm, and the student was using the left throttle to adjust for pitch and altitude. The instructor monitored the engine instruments throughout and noted no abnormalities.
As the aircraft aligned on base leg, the instructor observed that airspeed had dropped to 90 miles per hour and altitude was low, indicated by three red lights on the precision approach path indicators (PAPI). The instructor advised the student to add power on the left (good) engine and lower the nose. When the student applied the left throttle, no response was perceived. The instructor then directed, "you have both throttles, go around." At about 200 feet above ground level, the student applied full throttle to both engines. The airplane continued to descend, entered a loss of directional control (Vmc roll) to the left, and the left wing struck the runway first. The aircraft skidded off the runway and struck a taxiway sign.
The instructor further stated that he should have requested a go-around or taken control when he noticed the airspeed at 90 mph, rather than only advising the student about the low and slow condition.
Post-Accident Inspection
The aircraft was inspected by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) representative. However, the full inspection report was not provided to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The FAA stated that no mechanical problem was identified and that a report would be forthcoming. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The NTSB made repeated attempts to obtain additional information from the owner/operator, but no response was received.