Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
The pilot's failure to attain an adequate takeoff airspeed and failure to abort the takeoff when the lack of acceleration was apparent.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Historical)
Analysis
On February 4, 2003, about 0755 Pacific standard time, a Beech F35, N3361C, collided with a fence and a house during takeoff from a private dirt airstrip near Middleton, California. The pilot/owner was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The commercial pilot, the sole occupant, sustained minor injuries; the airplane sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed. The personal cross-country flight was en route to Ukiah, California.
The pilot reported that he was flying to work from a 1,600-feet-long private, dirt strip. The run-up was normal and he added power for takeoff. During the takeoff roll, one wheel drifted into softer dirt on the edge of the runway; as a result, the airplane slowed. The pilot maneuvered the airplane back to the runway and realized he was close to a barbed wire fence. He pulled back on the yoke but the main tires hit the top wire. Shortly thereafter, the airplane impacted a house.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# LAX03LA082