Beech BE-76 accident near Hinesville, Georgia, January 21, 2006
On January 21, 2006 at about 5:10 pm local time, a Beech BE-76, registered N6697N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hinesville, Georgia (Liberty County Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed which resulted in an inadvertent stall and subsequent impact with trees.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 21, 2006 · about 5:10 pm local time
- Place
- Hinesville, Georgia · Liberty County Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech BE-76
- Registration
- N6697N · no longer on the register · serial ME-272
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was completing an instrument cross-country flight when the accident occurred. Upon arrival at the destination airport, the pilot was cleared for a visual approach by air traffic control. The pilot stated that during the landing phase to runway 14, with a light right crosswind, he heard a popping noise after touchdown and the airplane veered left. The pilot initiated a go-around as the airplane departed the runway surface into the grass. The pilot reported that while attempting to clear trees, the stall warning horn sounded. He stated that he retracted the landing gear and then retracted the flaps. He reported that after flap retraction, the airplane’s left wing dropped, and the airplane lost altitude and collided with trees. Witnesses stated that the airplane climbed steeply and then banked to the left. According to witnesses, the airplane leveled, then the nose pitched up, rolled left, and nosed down into the trees. The pilot received serious injuries and the airplane was destroyed by impact forces and a postimpact fire. A postaccident examination of the wreckage determined that the landing gear was down and locked. The tires were consumed by fire. Other than the “popping” sound reported by the pilot several days after his initial statement, no mechanical problems were reported by the pilot or found during the postaccident examination of the airplane.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 1,380 hours in all; 80 in this make and model; 80 in the last 90 days; 1,000 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: January 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,556.7 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 1, 2006; 10 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,900 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Lycoming O-360-A1G6D (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Lycoming O-360-A1G6D (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: PDK Chamblee GA at 3:52 pm
- Destination: 2J2 Hinesville GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 14, 3,698 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,500 ft; clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.30 inHg
- Observation at 11:55 am from SVN
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.
