Individually Owned: 150,657
Corporate Owned: 137,281
Abernathy Municipal Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report
Abernathy, Texas 79311
Thursday, January 20, 2005 18:10 CST
NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident
A witness observed the airplane flying at an altitude of approximately 1,000 feet agl with its landing gear and flaps extended on a downwind leg to land at an adjacent airport. When it was abeam the north end of the runway, it began to descend below 500 feet agl in a northerly direction. The airplane then made a descending right turn toward a southerly heading. Subsequently, the witness observed the right wing impact the ground. Within seconds after the airplane came to rest, it was engulfed in flames. The right main fuel tank was ruptured and destroyed by fire. The right auxiliary tank contained residual fuel that was blue in color. The fuel cap was secure, and the finger strainer was free of debris. The left main fuel tank contained approximately 3/4-inch of blue fuel. The left auxiliary tank contained approximately two inches of blue fuel. The fuel cap was secure, and the finger strainer was free of debris. The fuel selector was found in the "auxiliary" fuel tanks position. The fuel screen in the fuel selector was clear of debris and installed with the cone upward. An engine examination was performed under the supervision of the NTSB at a nearby maintenance facility. The engine was rotated by hand at the crankshaft and valve train continuity and piston movement were verified on all six cylinders. No defects or anomalies were found with the engine that could have precluded normal engine operation. The fuel pump was removed and did not contain any fuel. The fuel screen was free of debris. A review of the before landing checklist in the airplane flight manual revealed that prior to landing, the fuel selector must be positioned to the "MAIN TANK MORE NEARLY FULL."
NTSB Probable Cause Narrative
The pilot's improper positioning of the fuel tank selector, which resulted in fuel starvation and a subsequent loss of engine power while maneuvering.
Event Information
| Type of Event | Accident |
| Event Date | 1/20/2005 |
| Event Day of the Week | Thursday |
| Time of Event | 1810 |
| Event Time Zone | Central Standard Time |
| Event City | Abernathy |
| Event State | TEXAS |
| Event Country | -- |
| Zipcode of the event site | 79311 |
| Event Date Year | 2005 |
| Event Date Month | 1 |
| MidAir Collision Indicator | No |
| On Ground Collision occurred ? | No |
| Event Location Latitude | 335155N |
| Event Location Longitude | 1014414W |
| Event Location Airport | Abernathy Municipal Airport |
| Event Location Nearest Airport ID | F83 |
| Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport | Off Airport/Airstrip |
| Distance from airport in statute miles | 1.66 |
| Degrees magnetic from airport | 45 |
| Airport Elevation | 3327 |
| Weather Briefing Completeness | Unknown |
| Investigator's weather source | Weather Observation Facility |
| Time of the weather observation | 1753 Central Standard Time |
| Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) | 180 |
| Weather Observation Facility ID | LBB |
| Elevation of weather observation facility | 3327 |
| Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) | 11 |
| Time Zone of the weather observation | CST |
| Lighting Conditions | Day |
| Lowest Ceiling Height | 25000 |
| Lowest Non-Ceiling Height | -- |
| Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions | Clear |
| Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling | Broken |
| Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) | -- |
| Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) | -- |
| Visibility (Statute Miles) | 10 |
| Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) | 17 |
| Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) | 1 |
| Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) | 270 |
| Variable Wind Indicator | Wind direction could be determined |
| Wind Speed (knots) | 8 |
| Wind Velocity Indicator | -- |
| Wind Gust Indicator | Gusting |
| Wind Gust (knots) | 0 |
| Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) | 30.18 |
| Density Altitude (feet) | 1246 |
| Intensity of Precipitation | -- |
| METAR weather report | -- |
| Event Highest Injury | Fatal |
| On Ground, Fatal Injuries | -- |
| On Ground, Minor Injuries | -- |
| On Ground, Serious Injuries | -- |
| Injury Total Fatal | 2 |
| Injury Total Minor | -- |
| Injury Total None | -- |
| Injury Total Serious | -- |
| Injury Total All | 2 |
| Investigating Agency | NTSB |
| NTSB Docket Number (internal use) | 17720 |
| NTSB Notification Source | FAA Operations Center |
| NTSB Notification Date | Jan 20 2005 12:00AM |
| NTSB Notification Time | 1900 |
| Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information | DMS |
| Date of most recent change to record | Jun 8 2005 12:51PM |
| User who most recently changed record | NTSB\JOHB |
| Basic weather conditions | Visual Meteorological Cond |
| FAA District Office | Lubbock, Texas |
Aircraft Involved |
|
|---|---|
Aircraft #1 |
|
| Aircraft Registration Number | N399RH |
| NTSB Number | DFW05FA058 |
| Missing Aircraft Indicator | -- |
| Federal Aviation Reg. Part | Part 91: General Aviation |
| Type of Flight Plan filed | None |
| Flight plan Was Activated? | No |
| Damage | Destroyed |
| Aircraft Fire | Ground |
| Aircraft Explosion | Ground |
| Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name | Beech |
| Aircraft Model | J-35 |
| Aircraft Series Identifier | -- |
| Aircraft Serial Number | D-5720 |
| Certified Max Gross Weight | 2900 |
| Aircraft Category | Airplane |
| Aircraft Registration Class | U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil |
| Aircraft is a homebuilt? | No |
| Flight Crew Seats | -- |
| Cabin Crew Seats | -- |
| Passenger Seats | -- |
| Total number of seats on the aircraft | 4 |
| Number of Engines | 1 |
| Fixed gear or retractable gear | Retractable |
| Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection | Annual |
| Date of Last Inspection | Feb 4 2004 12:00AM |
| Airframe hours since last inspection | -- |
| Airframe Hours | 2527.38 |
| ELT Installed | Yes |
| ELT Activated | No |
| ELT Aided Location of Event Site | No |
| ELT Type | -- |
| Aircraft Owner Name | Timothy B. Vaughn |
| Aircraft Owner Street Address | 11302 Highway 84 #110 |
| Aircraft Owner City | Shallowater |
| Aircraft Owner State | TX |
| Aircraft Owner Country | USA |
| Aircraft Owner Zipcode | 79363 |
| Operator is an individual? | No |
| Operator Name | -- |
| Operator Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Is Doing Business As | -- |
| Operator Address Same as Owner? | Yes |
| Operator Street Address | -- |
| Operator City | -- |
| Operator State | -- |
| Operator Country | -- |
| Operator Zip code | -- |
| Operator Code | -- |
| Owner has at least one certificate | None |
| Other Operator of large aircraft? | -- |
| Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation | -- |
| Operator Certificate Number | -- |
| Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not | -- |
| Indicates Domestic or International Flight | -- |
| Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail | -- |
| Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) | Personal |
| Second Pilot on Board | No |
| Departure Point Same as Event | No |
| Departure Airport Code | TA67 |
| Departure City | Shallowater |
| Departure State | TX |
| Departure Country | USA |
| Departure Time | 1750 |
| Departure Time Zone | CST |
| Destination Same as Local Flt | dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere |
| Destination Airport Code | -- |
| Destination City | -- |
| Destination State | -- |
| Destination Country | -- |
| Specific Phase of Flight | Emergency landing |
| Report sent to ICAO? | No |
| Evacuation occurred | No |
| Date of most recent change to record | Mar 30 2005 4:58PM |
| User who most recently changed record | CASH |
| Since inspection or accident | Last Inspection |
| Event Location Runway Number and Location | NA |
| Runway Length | -- |
| Runway Width | -- |
| Sight Seeing flight | No |
| Air Medical Flight | No |
| Medical Flight | -- |