N3151G

On August 1, 1999, at 1328 Pacific daylight time, a Beech B36TC, N3151G, registered to and operated by the pilot, was substantially damaged during a landing attempt at Renton, Washington, after the pilot reported a problem to the Renton air traffic control tower immediately after takeoff and turned back to the airport. The private pilot-in-command and one passenger received minor injuries, and two passengers aboard the aircraft were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at Renton at the time, and no flight plan had been filed for the 14 CFR 91 personal flight bound for Dietz Airpark, Canby, Oregon.

FAA air traffic control (ATC) recordings indicated that the pilot advised he had a problem and needed to circle back around approximately 1 minute and 14 seconds after being cleared for takeoff from runway 15, and that the aircraft impacted the ground next to runway 33 approximately 35 seconds after the pilot's call to the tower advising that he had a problem. The pilot reported to the NTSB that after a normal takeoff from Renton runway 15, the engine started to make a "missing" sound at about 200 feet above ground level. He stated that the fuel flow indicated zero, then became erratic. The pilot reported he then made a "standard left turn" back to runway 33. He stated the aircraft then "began a violent vibration." He reported that he then closed the throttle, lowered the gear, and attempted to land. The aircraft landed on a grass area between the taxiway and the runway, sustaining substantial damage in the landing. The pilot reported he took off with 60 gallons of fuel aboard, consisting of 20 gallons in the right tank and 40 gallons in the left tank. FAA inspectors who responded to the accident site reported they found fuel in one of the aircraft's tanks (they reported the other fuel tank was breached open, and that a strong fuel odor was noted at the accident site immediately following the accident.) A witness, who responded to the accident scene to lend assistance after the accident, reported that upon arrival at the aircraft, he found the aircraft's fuel selector on the right main fuel tank.

An FAA principal maintenance safety inspector from the Portland, Oregon, Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) performed a field examination of the aircraft's Continental TSIO-520-UB engine and McCauley 3A32C406-C propeller on August 31, 1999. The only anomaly the FAA inspector reported from the engine examination was that the compression on cylinder 5 appeared low. The inspector reported that he found two broken propeller blade actuating links, and that "One link looks like it could have been cracked previously." Western Aircraft Propeller Service of Troutdale, Oregon, subsequently conducted a disassembly examination of the propeller. In a report submitted to the NTSB by Western Aircraft Propeller Service dated October 7, 1999, the firm's owner reported that "we could not find any reason that the links are damaged other than the extreme ground strike that the propeller received." The Western Aircraft Propeller Service report further stated: "The blades when [the] propeller was taken off appeared to be all in the same position and the damage all appears to have been done while the blades were in the same basic position."

On October 5, 1999, the pilot's father telephoned the NTSB investigator-in-charge (IIC) and reported that Premier Aircraft Engines of Troutdale, Oregon, had performed a complete teardown examination of the engine. The pilot's father reported that no deficiencies were found during this examination except for slight wear on one cam lobe.

The aircraft and its engine had approximately 1,417 hours total time. The aircraft received its last annual inspection on April 29, 1999, approximately 32 flight hours before the accident. The engine was "top overhauled" on December 12, 1995, at 931.8 hours total time. The aircraft's McCauley 3-blade, constant-speed propeller was overhauled on December 19, 1996. At the time of the accident, the propeller had approximately 254 hours since overhaul.