| Crash location | 32.850556°N, 86.616667°W |
| Nearest city | Clanton, AL
32.838737°N, 86.629426°W 1.1 miles away |
| Tail number | N550G |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 06 Jul 2002 |
| Aircraft type | Beech B50 |
| Additional details: | None |
On July 6, 2002, about 2250, central daylight time, a Beech B50, N550G, registered to and operated by a private individual, as a Title 14 CFR part 91 personal flight, crashed while landing at Gragg-Wade Field, Clanton, Alabama. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The private-rated pilot and one pilot-rated passenger received no injuries, and the airplane incurred substantial damage. The flight originated in Pell City, Alabama, the same day, about 2130.
The pilot stated that as they approached to land, the approach was good until the very last "part", and he did not like his alignment with the landing runway, so he attempted a go-around fairly close to the ground. He said that as he pushed the throttles forward to obtain full power, the airplane immediately yawed to the left and the nose and right wing pitched up. He said that the left engine did not produce power and that he applied full right rudder control input, "pulled" the power, and pushed the nose over to counteract the yaw, but the airplane touched down on the runway, having yawed to the left, and departed the runway to the left into the grass and impacted a fence incurring damage.
The passenger stated that the pilot was performing a touch-and-go landing, and that the landing flare/touchdown was uneventful. He said that during the takeoff roll the aircraft began to veer to the left, and the pilot appeared to be applying corrective rudder input trying to maintain control, but was unsuccessful. He said the pilot even asked him if he had his feet on the rudder, and he replied no, stating that he had his feet flat on the floor.
The aircraft exited the runway to the left into the grass, and collided with steel beams which sheared off the landing gear, and damaged a wing as well as the horizontal stabilizer.
The pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during an aborted landing that resulted in a ground swerve and the airplane exiting the runway and collided with a fence, incurring damage.