Britten-Norman BN-2A-20 accident near Stanley, Idaho, July 15, 2007
On July 15, 2007 at about 11:00 pm local time, a Britten-Norman BN-2A-20, registered N6561B, was substantially damaged in an accident near Stanley, Idaho (Stanley airport). It was a positioning 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 pilot's failure to verify that the airplane was refueled, which resulted in a loss of engine power from both engines due to fuel exhaustion and a forced landing. A contributing factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 15, 2007 · about 11:00 pm local time
- Place
- Stanley, Idaho · Stanley · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Britten-Norman BN-2A-20 · all BN-2A-20s on the register
- Registration
- N6561B · registry record · serial 520
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot, before the flight, prior to the accident flight, he placed a fuel order, but did not verify that the twin-engine airplane was refueled before departing with 8 passengers for a cross country flight. This flight reached its destination without incident, the passengers exited the airplane, and the pilot then departed as the sole occupant of the airplane on a repositioning flight. Shortly after takeoff, at an altitude of about 400 feet agl, the left engine "started to sputter." The pilot executed the engine failure checklist and upon retarding the left throttle, the airplane yawed to the left "giving [the pilot] the impression it was still producing power." He decided not to shut down the engine and began a right turn to return to the departure airport. During the turn, the right engine "started to sputter," and he noticed the "fuel tank indicators were both on empty." The pilot decided "to leave all controls forward and gave no further thought to shutting down or feathering either engine." Shortly thereafter, he realized he would not make the runway and elected to land in an open field. During the landing roll, the airplane encountered a ditch, resulting in collapse of the left main landing gear.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,825 hours in all; 7 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine 1: Lycoming IO-540-K1B5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Lycoming IO-540-K1B5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Mountain Bird, Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: 2U7 Stanley ID
- Destination: SMN Salmon ID
- Runway 17, 4,300 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 090° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
Other NTSB records under N6561B the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number SEA07CA221.