Incident Overview
On August 8, 2025, at approximately 1757 eastern daylight time, a Beech A36 (registration N60357) sustained substantial damage during a forced landing in Wirt County, West Virginia. The commercial pilot and three passengers were not injured. The flight was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 corporate flight.
Flight Details
The pilot reported departing Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport/Adams Field (LIT) in Little Rock, Arkansas, at 1233 central daylight time, with a destination of North Central West Virginia Airport (CKB) in Clarksburg, West Virginia—a straight-line distance of 637.5 nautical miles. About 23 minutes from the destination, the pilot began a descent from 7,000 ft mean sea level (msl) to 5,000 ft msl. At approximately 6,000 ft msl, the engine experienced a total loss of power.
Emergency Response
The pilot attempted to restart the engine but was unsuccessful. An air traffic controller provided a vector to the nearest airport, but the airplane was unable to glide that distance. The pilot selected an open field for a forced landing. The airplane came to rest in a tree line at the end of the field, resulting in substantial damage to the right wing.
Postaccident Examination
An FAA inspector examined the airplane and found that the fuel tanks contained no fuel. The pilot reported that the airplane had been full of fuel prior to the flight. The manufacturer indicated that the accident airplane was built with the extended range fuel tank option, giving a total usable fuel capacity of 74 gallons. Preliminary fuel burn calculations, based on ADS-B data and the Pilot's Operating Handbook, showed that the airplane would have burned approximately 61 gallons of fuel by the time of the accident.
Ongoing Investigation
The onboard avionics were removed and sent to the National Transportation Safety Board vehicle recorders laboratory for data extraction. The wreckage has been retained for further examination.