BEECH A36

Full Narrative

On July 22, 2024, at 1812 eastern daylight time, a Beech A36 airplane, N1089W, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Ronkonkoma, New York. The private pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.
The pilot was departing from Long Island Mac Arthur Airport (ISP), Ronkonkoma, New York, and taxied from the ramp via taxiways C to B to join runway 24 for an intersection takeoff at the 4,100 ft-remaining point of the 7,006 ft-long runway, leaving 2,906 ft unused. The pilot’s reasoning for the intersection takeoff was not known or communicated. The controller stated, “November eight nine whiskey wind one eight zero at one one runway two four at bravo cleared for takeoff.” The pilot acknowledged and subsequently departed.
Security video taken from a camera located at the airport terminal showed the airplane during the takeoff roll, liftoff, and initial climb, which all appeared normal. The landing gear retracted before the airplane disappeared out of the camera frame. Data from a commercial ADS-B provider indicated that the takeoff roll was about 1,200 ft-long prior to liftoff and that the groundspeed was about 82 kts during initial climb. Shortly after the landing gear were raised, the ground speed decayed to 62 kts before the airplane began a descending turn to the left. Figure 1 shows an aerial image of the ISP airport with the airplane’s ground track, camera view and groundspeeds overlaid.

Figure 1 - ADS-B data with the airplane’s track over runway 24 overlaid along with annotations of the airplane’s ground speed (GS).
An eyewitness stated that the takeoff appeared normal, but that as the airplane was climbing, they heard “sputtering” and then a “loud pop.” The airplane rolled to the left and impacted terrain just off the paved runway threshold.
A review of maintenance records over the previous 48 months indicated that the last annual inspection of the airframe, engine and propeller was completed on September 11, 2023, at an airframe total time of 4,787 hours, an engine total time of 3,137 hours, and 843 hours since the engine’s most recent major overhaul. Maintenance task completed during the annual inspection included, but were not limited to, the replacement of the gascolator seals and drain valve with a successful leak check, inspection of all engine cylinders with a borescope, servicing of the spark plugs, a magneto timing check, and lapping of the exhaust valves on cylinder Nos. 2 and 3. There were no outstanding or deferred items documented at the conclusion of the inspection. There was no documentation of an annual/100-hour inspection in 2022, however, previous annual and a 100-hour inspections were conducted in June 2021, May 2020, and March 2019. The pilot purchased the airplane in August 2009.
The wreckage path was oriented on a heading of about 165° magnetic at an elevation of 106 ft. The initial impact and ground scar consisted of an 8 ft long gouge in the terrain, followed by propeller slash marks and a crater that contained plexiglass and engine compartment pieces.
The airplane came to rest upright with the nose oriented towards the runway on a magnetic heading of 008°. The remaining portion of the left wing folded leading edge up against the left side of the fuselage with the flap and majority of the aileron still attached. The left main fuel tank was compromised and did not contain any fuel, nor did the wingtip tank; however, there was a large area under the fuselage and left side of the airplane that showed evidence of fuel spillage blight to the grass, and there was blue fuel staining on the wing tank area. The right wing sustained some dents and minor deformation but was otherwise intact and the right main fuel tank contained about 20 gallons of 100LL aviation fuel. The wingtip tank contained about 2 gallons of fuel. The landing gear was in the retracted position.
Flight control cable continuity was established from all of the flight control surfaces to their respective cockpit controls. The flap actuator extension measurements correlated to the flaps being in the retracted position. The elevator trim actuator measurements were consistent with the tabs being deflected 8° trailing edge down (nose up).
The propeller remained attached to the engine crankshaft. One blade exhibited a slight wave bend along its span, chordwise scrapes and polishing, and was bent aft about 30°. The opposing blade was bent uniformly aft about 40°, and had minor chordwise scrapes and a tip gouge on the leading edge. The spinner was crushed inward on one side and compressed on the hub. The propeller governor and control linkage were severely impact damaged.
The engine’s crankshaft was rotated manually, and powertrain and valvetrain continuity was confirmed throughout the engine. Compression was observed on all cylinders. A subsequent borescope examination of all six cylinders, pistons, and valves revealed no anomalies noted on the piston faces, valve faces, or interiors of the cylinders. No anomalies were noted on the camshaft lobes. All six-cylinder assemblies were removed and disassembled down to their individual components, pistons, valves, pushrods, and springs. Each of the duel valve springs for intake and exhaust were examined and no defects were observed. The springs were placed on a manual valve spring tester. All of the springs were free of defects and yielded normal results.
Aviation fuel (100LL) was recovered from each of the fuel distribution lines. The fuel injectors were free of any obstructions and the interior faces of all six fuel injectors appeared normal. The engine-driven fuel pump was actuated by power drill and produced suction and expulsion of fuel from a test can. The auxiliary boost pump switch in the cockpit was not damaged and found secured in the OFF position. 
The fuel selector contained about 3 oz of fuel. The lever moved freely with smooth action and no hinderance or limitation to movement. Each of the detents were felt and low air pressure was used at each of the output/input lines with no obstructions observed.
The oil filter was opened revealing paper element pleats that appeared normal, and all components appeared to be well lubricated and there were no contaminants on the oil suction screen.
The 12 spark plugs displayed normal coloration and wear as compared to the Champion Check-A-Plug chart. The left and right magnetos were placed on a magneto spark bench tester, yielding blue/purple sparks on all posts at a full low-high-low rpm cycle.
The Office of the Medical Examiner Suffolk County, New York performed the pilot’s autopsy. According to the pilot’s autopsy report, the cause of death was blunt force injuries of the head, neck and torso, and his manner of death was accident.
Toxicological testing was conducted by the FAA Forensic Sciences Laboratory, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Postmortem toxicological testing detected citalopram at 46 ng/mL in femoral blood and at 340 ng/mL in urine. The citalopram metabolite n-desmethylcitalopram also was detected in femoral blood and urine, as was terbinafine.
Citalopram and metabolite – Citalopram is a prescription medication commonly used to treat depression. N-desmethylcitalopram is a metabolite of citalopram. Studies of citalopram have not established that it causes significant cognitive or psychomotor impairment. However, citalopram may carry a warning that any psychoactive drug may impair judgment, thinking, or motor skills, and that users should be cautioned about operating hazardous machinery, including motor vehicles, until they are reasonably certain that citalopram does not affect their ability to engage in such activities. Additionally, major depression can cause cognitive impairment, particularly of executive function. A pilot on citalopram (not in combination with other psychiatric drugs) may be considered for FAA medical certification via special issuance, depending on evaluation of the individual pilot’s condition and response to treatment.
Terbinafine is an antifungal medication that is available for topical use without a prescription, and for oral use with a prescription. Terbinafine is not typically impairing.
The pilot’s last aviation medical examination was in July 2018. At that time, he reported no active medical conditions or medication use. He was issued a third-class medical certificate without limitation. That certificate subsequently expired.
The pilot also completed a BasicMed course, most recently in August 2021, and reported completing a BasicMed Comprehensive Medical Examination Checklist, most recently in July 2018. These were beyond their expiration dates when the accident occurred. At the time of the accident, the pilot did not possess current medical certification and did not meet requirements to fly under BasicMed provisions.