MIA02FA170 · Beagle Aircraft B-206 Series 2

The airplane impacted terrain in a nose low pitch attitude after the private pilot lost control during a turn from base to final approach. Witnesses located at the arrival airport reported the accident airplane flew a fairly "tight" right downwind pattern for runway 36 that was a "little low" (about 650 to 750 feet above ground level [agl]). The surface winds were from the east, and according to the witnesses, the result was that the pilot overshot his turn to final approach. The pilot corrected back toward the centerline in a fairly steep bank when the airplane was observed to enter a roll to the right, the nose dropped toward the ground. The witnesses then lost sight of the airplane as it descended behind trees in a nose low pitch attitude. Witnesses estimated the altitude of the airplane at the time of the roll was between 300 and 350 feet agl. The private pilot flew the airplane once within the preceding 6 months and twice within the past 12 months. No anomalies with the airframe or engines were noted that would have prevented their normal operation. According to the fixed-based operator, where the airplane was based, fueling personnel added 10 gallons to each wing prior to the accident flight; however, they were not sure what the airplane's total fuel quantity was. The unusable fuel quantity was 6.1 gallons. The fuel consumption rate varied between 24.4 and 33.0 gallons per hour depending on the power setting, and the accident flight lasted 35 minutes. No fuel was found in the fuel system components for the right engine with the exception of the fuel manifold. It was possible that the right engine's fuel supply line may have become unported during the steep bank to final; however, with an unknown fuel quantity, this could not be determined conclusively. Toxicology tests performed on the pilot were positive for tramadol (prescription painkiller) and chlorpheniramine (antihistamine, commonly used in over-the-counter cold/allergy preparations). Side effects for the drugs include dizziness, sleepiness, and performance degradation for complex cognitive and motor tasks. It is likely the use of the two drugs impaired the pilot's judgment and performance in pre-flight planning and in the flight itself.

Verbatim NTSB analysis and probable cause from the NTSB dataset