The pilot and flight instructor had completed about two hours of multi-engine flight training in the Beech 76 and were performing a “zero thrust, single engine” full stop landing at the airport in St. Charles, Missouri.
A sink rate developed on final approach and the flight instructor told the pilot to “add a small amount of power to the right operating engine.”
The pilot misunderstood the instruction as “abort” and added full power to the right engine to abort the landing.
The airplane rolled left and the flight instructor added right rudder to arrest the roll.
The left wing hit the ground and the airplane rotated left on the ground, substantially damaging the left wing and collapsing the three landing gear.
Neither pilot was injured. There were no mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
Probable Cause: The pilot receiving instruction’s misunderstanding of the flight instructor’s instruction and the pilot’s and the instructor’s insufficient use of rudder while adding power to the operating engine, which resulted in the airplane rolling left and the wing striking the ground. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor’s delayed remedial action.
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This January 2020 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
Assassin Vmca struck again, but in this case the pilots could walk away from this event, congrats. More than 4000 people could not, during the past 25 years after 480 accidents. Why not? Because of a huge misunderstanding of the real value and meaning of minimum control speed Vmc(a). I have not seen a good explanation of Vmc(a) and no good analysis and conclusion in NTSB reports except in the course books of the USAF Test Pilot School that I attended 35 years ago. We tested airplanes while an engine was inoperative and did not crash. I recommend readers to check my website avioconsult.com for links to these books and for many free papers and a YouTube lecture with the right stuff on engine-out flight. After reading, you’ll know how to maintain control during engine-out training, or following a real engine failure and return home safely.
Have to wonder if they were using headsets (probably). Were they noise-canceling? Clear, unambiguous two-way communication is critically important while instructing.
Ed
Really need to hear what the instructor said and how he said it.
The student saying the instructor said “add a small amount of power to the right (operating?) engine is a long ways from “abort”.
Well, this sounds like some of the articles I’ve read on the proper technique to control bank when in slow flight. While the rudder produces some rolling moment, and gets the pilot active on the rudder, I don’t think it is going to be nearly as effective as using the ailerons. Of course when using the ailerons, you produce adverse aileron yaw, so rudder is needed to control that. Bottom line, by using just rudder, you are using just a fraction of the forces available to control bank. Use coordinated aileron and rudder to control bank (aileron as needed for the bank – rudder as needed for the yaw).
Single engine flight. Yaw is the primary initial moment of the plane. Yaw is countered with the rudder.
Prompt application of rudder to hold heading. Followed by identify, verify and secure.
Raise the inoperative wing a few degrees. Trim rudder and ailerons.
At Vmca you have control. Vmca minus 1 knot and you don’t. Your target AIRSPEED is Vyse Blue line.
I had something similar happen to me during my training, the instructor was looking out the Right window during final. I felt something decending from about mid final. I said to him, (There’s something wrong!) He replied, you are doing fine. The aircraft started dropping like a rock, we were decending very quickly. I added power and he replied, go around after he felt the decent. Turns out we experienced a 180 degree wind shift just above the ground. I wasn’t looking at the wind sock and neither was my instructor. No tower and no other Aircraft in the pattern. But the wind is always blowing in some direction in Oklahoma!! Students in training are unfamiliar with all the aspects of learning to be a pilot. He soloed me in 10 hours but we continued to go through the rest of the training. As I was an A/P mechanic and did his maintenance in exchange for my private pilot license training. It takes a lifetime to discover new things you have never experienced before. Example, I had a vaccum pump fail on a cross-country, fly the aircraft no matter what happens. My wife was oblivious to the fact until after I landed and I told her we had to stay an extra day so I could go buy a pump and install it before we could go home.. Fly safe people.
The Duchess BE 76 is very docile even on one engine. BEECH even considered certifying single engine spins.
The CFI ME should have briefed the student before the flight and again when the flight began and before each pattern.
Adding even full power on the operative engine won’t roll the Duchess if the rudder is used to control yaw.
The BE 76 is a tough little airplane.
When I win the LOTTERY I might buy a coupe and install 250 horsepower engines and amphib floats. Might have to add ventral fins like a BE 1900 but they’d be smaller.
I’m getting old and am not renewing my CFI in 2 weeks.
Sad to hear your not renewing your CFI. We need good, caring and knowledgeable people training our future pilots.
Don’t let all that knowledge that took years to gin go to waste.
Find some way to transfer that brain matter to students, maybe Civil Air Patrol.