What happened
On August 8, 2019, a Beech F33A, registration N4082S, departed Northeast Philadelphia Airport (PNE) for a cross-country flight to St. Louis, Missouri. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot received air traffic control instructions to fly a runway heading and maintain 2,000 feet mean sea level. After the departure, the aircraft entered an overcast cloud layer that extended from approximately 900 feet to 1,800 feet mean sea level.
Data from an ADS–B performance study indicates that after approximately 20 to 30 seconds in the clouds, the aircraft banked right and deviated from the assigned heading, then banked left, reaching a maximum altitude of 1,186 feet. The aircraft then entered a steep descent at 2,000 feet per minute while rapidly increasing airspeed. During this descent, the aircraft banked right to approximately 30 degrees before leveling the wings just before impact. The final recorded altitude was 586 feet, and the final calculated airspeed was 180 knots. The aircraft crashed in a residential backyard, resulting in 3 fatal injuries.
The investigation
Investigators examined the wreckage and found the engine was producing high power at the time of impact, consistent with witness reports of a loud engine. The aircraft's landing gear was in the retracted position, and no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunction was found. The Garmin G5 electronic flight display sustained extensive damage, and no data could be retrieved from its SD card slot.
An avionics mechanic noted that the pilot had previously demonstrated difficulty managing power settings when using the Garmin GFC 500 autopilot and had occasionally deactivated the electronic stability protection (ESP) system because he disliked it. The NTSB performance study found that the aircraft's ESP parameters for roll, pitch, and airspeed were not exceeded during the flight.
Regarding the pilot's health, a fuel technician reported that the pilot mentioned experiencing chest pains the day before the accident. However, medical records and toxicology reports did not provide evidence of an acute medical event or the presence of impairing drugs; the toxicology test was only positive for caffeine.