Cessna 340

The airplane became missing while on an IFR flight in instrument conditions from Yakutat, Alaska to Anchorage, Alaska. There was not further radio communication with the airplane after the pilot reported level at his assigned altitude of 12,000 feet msl. After listening to FAA air traffic control tapes of communications with the pilot, his wife stated that several minutes after the point which the FAA said was the last transmission from the pilot, she heard her husband say something about '6,000' and 'icing conditions'. An enhancement examination of the tapes by the FBI laboratory failed to confirm this information. Aircraft damage and occupant injuries are presumed.

On final approach the pilot reported an engine failure. He said he was putting the landing gear down. The airplane crashed 3 miles from the airport. Examination of the engines revealed no discrepancies. The pilot did not feather the propeller after the engine failure. He had no training in this airplane or any other multi-engine airplane in over 5 years. His last before was in a Cessna 172. It was reported that the pilot did not manage the airplane fuel system in the recommended manner. A witness said the pilot used fuel from the main tanks until they were nearly empty. He ignored forecasts of light icing conditions and during his flight he reported ice accumulation. All five occupants were killed.

Returning to the pilot's home base airport, the pilot indicated that he overflew the uncontrolled field and then entered the traffic pattern for runway 26 which was over 4,400 feet long. The pilot reported that he observed the wind sock was parallel to the runway but failed to initially observe that he was landing with a nearly direct 20 to 25 knot tailwind. The airplane touched down long, overran the runway's departure end, collided with a pole and caught on fire. All three occupants escaped with minor injuries.

On arrival at Longleat, the aircraft made a circuit of the landing area, which was a section of private road closed to the public. During this circuit, the pilot commented to his passengers that the road might be too narrow for the aircraft, which had a mainwheel track width of 3,93 meters. The road is 5,4 meters wide and, on this occasion, was bounded on both sides with wet grass. The wind was southerly and the landing direction was 155° (M). Landing Distance Available was 973 meters. On short final approach to land after a second circuit of the intended landing place, the aircraft encountered windshear at 200 feet agl, and touched down on the grass 1,6 metre to the left of the landing strip, striking the left propeller and the tail skid on the ground. The aircraft then struck a 'No Parking' sign and, 48 metres further on, as the landing gear started to sink into the soft ground, the right propeller also contacted the ground. The aircraft came to rest in another 64 metres. There was no fire, but one of the passenger seat back collapsed at some stage of the landing or the roll-out, resulting in a minor back injury to one of the passengers. He was taken to the local hospital but was released the same evening.

During the night cross country flight at FL250, the pilot elected to leave the cockpit area and move to the rear of the aircraft to attend to physiological needs. Although oxygen was available in the cockpit, supplemental oxygen was not available in the rear. The aircraft was operated with a known pressurization system deficiency which limited the airplane to flight to 17,000 feet msl while maintaining a cabin altitude of 10,000 feet. After 2 hours and 10 minutes, atc declared the flight to be 'no radio'. At 3 hours and 57 minutes after departure, the airplane was plotted on radar in a descending left turn to ground impact. Fuel starvation resulted in power loss to the left engine. Propeller signatures indicated power on the right propeller at impact. The pilot's body was found in the aft cabin area on the aft cabin bulkhead.

According to witnesses, the weather was changing from minute to minute as the aircraft was arriving. Witnesses reported the wind was blowing from east to northeast at 10 to 15 knots, rain fall was varying from strong to periods of light rain, and the ceiling (cloud level) was variable. The pilot began an ILS runway 36 approach; however, before reaching the airport, the aircraft collided with trees and crashed about 2 miles short of the runway. The pilot was seriously injured and could not remember the accident, but did recalled receiving a wind shear alert. The pilot reported an intermittent problem with the autopilot heading mode; however, no other preimpact malfunction or failure of the acft was evident. All five occupants were injured, two seriously.

The pilot in the right seat had hired the pilot in the left seat to ferry the airplane to Germany, then to Turkey. A four tank ferry fuel system was installed but a weight and balance check was not made. During the tkof, the aircraft would not climb. Afterward the airplane was computed to have been overweight and the cg was aft of the rear limit. The left wing hit trees and the right wing hit two fences. After colliding with the terrain, the airplane burned. Both occupants were killed.

The aircraft crashed on the side of a mountain during visual meteorological conditions. The pilot had been in voice and radar contact with air traffic control until the aircraft disappeared from radar. The pilot reported severe turbulence and a rough running engine to ATC as he was nearing a mountain pass. The pilot stated that he thought the rough running engine was due to fuel contamination. A witness reported that the pilot had said the fuel had contained a lot of water. The pilot reported to ATC that he had just lost the engine and he was attempting to make it through a saddle. A sigmet had been issued for that region and the severe turbulence was confirmed by another pilot. Engine teardown revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical failure/malfunction.

At approximately 0600, the aircraft departed Guerrero Negro, Mexico on an air taxi flight to Tijuana, Mexico. At 0715, the Tijuana weather was reported as partially obscured, visibility 1 mile with fog, haze and smoke, wind calm. During arrival, the pilot was cleared for an ILS runway 09 approach and reported over the final approach fix. However, the aircraft crashed at about 0759, before reaching the middle marker, which was 1/2 mile from the approach end of runway 09. Impact was on a ridge about 110 feet below the airport elevation and approximately 100 yards north of the international border. The aircraft was found a short time later by US Border patrol personnel. No preimpact part failure or malfunction was found. The 0800 weather at Tijuana was in part: sky partially obscured, visibility 1/10 mile with fog and haze, wind 210° at 4 knots. About 1 mile north at Brown Field, the weather was in part: sky partially obscured, visibility 3/4 mile with fog and haze, wind 280° at 4 knots. A toxicology check of the pilot's blood showed an alcohol level of 0.7‰. Calculations showed the sun would have been 16 ° above the horizon on a magnetic azimuth of 89.8°. All six occupants were killed.

Shortly after takeoff from Yamoussoukro Airport, while climbing, the twin engine aircraft went out of control and crashed. All four occupants were killed, among them two people of the Toyota Rallye Team.