Accident Overview
A Beechcraft B200 airplane crashed short of the runway after both engines lost power on final approach. The flight, intended for avionics evaluation, lasted about 23 minutes. Post-crash inspection found only residual fuel in the main and auxiliary tanks, with no evidence of fuel leakage or tank breach.
Flight Details
The pilot had delivered the airplane to a maintenance facility for a phase inspection. The following morning, he arrived, performed a preflight inspection, and waited for avionic technicians. During his wait, two maintenance facility employees test-ran the engines for approximately 30 to 35 minutes as part of inspection preparation. The pilot was unaware of this engine run when he later returned to the airplane.
Before departure, the pilot consulted the flight management system (FMS) fuel totalizer rather than the aircraft fuel gauges. He later speculated that the mechanics had not powered up the FMS during the engine run, preventing the totalizer from recording the fuel consumed. The mechanics reported that each tank contained 200 pounds of fuel after the run. The B200 Pilot's Operating Handbook directs pilots not to take off if fuel quantity gauges indicate in the yellow arc or below 265 pounds per main tank.
During final approach, the right engine lost power, followed shortly by the left engine. The pilot attempted to glide to the runway with landing gear and flaps retracted, but the airplane impacted terrain short of the runway.
Probable Cause
The official probable cause is: A loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot’s failure to visually verify that sufficient fuel was on board prior to flight.