Beech BE-G35 accident near Urbana, Illinois, February 9, 2003
On February 9, 2003 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Beech BE-G35, registered N4668D, was substantially damaged in an accident near Urbana, Illinois (Frasca Airfield). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The partial failure of the left stabilizer in overload.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 9, 2003 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Urbana, Illinois · Frasca Airfield · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech BE-G35
- Registration
- N4668D · no longer on the register · serial D-4858
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left stabilator spar while performing a steep turn maneuver. The pilot stated his airspeed was about 120 miles per hour when entering the maneuver and he did not recall his airspeed increasing any more than five knots during the maneuver. The pilot indicated that as he was performing the left steep turn he began to lose altitude and increased elevator pressure to correct for the altitude loss. He reported that on recovery the control yoke began to vibrate and the rudder pedals began to "advance back and forth rapidly." The pilot stated he released the backpressure on the controls and landed without incident. Review of the airplane's logbooks showed that both ruddervators had been recently reskinned, painted, and balanced. An examination of the airplane revealed the ruddervator trim tabs had been installed upside down and that the trim tab wire had been threaded improperly. The ruddervators were balanced and the left ruddervator was determined to be 19.86 inch pounds underbalance, with the allowed underbalance moment range being 16.80 to 19.80 inch pounds. The on-site inspection revealed a crack in the left stabillator spar. The fracture initiated at the top of the spar that attaches to the bulkhead, migrated through the top outboard bolt hole, and progressed to the bottom outboard bolt hole.The metallurgical examination revealed that the fracture of the main spar of the left stabilator was representative of a tension overload along the full length of the fracture zone.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 470 hours in all; 145 in this make and model; 23 in the last 90 days; 13 in the last 30 days; 368 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: December 10, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,000 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 1, 2003; 25 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental E-225 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C16 Urbana IL at 7:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 4,001 ft by 55 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 27°F (-3°C), dew point 3°F (-16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from CMI, 7 miles away
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.