NTSB Factual Report

On June 2, 2003, at 1645 central daylight time, a Beech 58P, N60BR, registered to Hallmark Aircraft Incorporated and operated by a private pilot, collided with the ground 120 feet short of runway 28 at Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge Airport, Gatlinburg, Tennessee. The business flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 and an instrument flight plan was filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The airplane was substantially damaged and the pilot and two passengers reported no injuries. The flight departed Orlando Executive Airport, Orlando, Florida, on June 2, 2003 at 1441 eastern daylight time.

The pilot stated that his altitude was low during the approach to land and he did not realize that there was a hill at the approach end of runway 28. The nose gear of the airplane collided with the hill 120 feet short of the runway. The airplane slid down the hill and came to rest on the runway, approximately 30 feet beyond the approach end. No mechanical or flight control malfunctions were reported by the pilot.

Examination of the airplane showed the skin of the right wing, the fuselage underneath the pilot's seat, and the firewall were buckled. The nose of the airplane had crush damage, and the nose gear was pushed up into the wheel well. Both engines and propellers were damaged, with the left propeller blades bent aft, and the right propeller blades broken from the engine. Review of the Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge Airport runway 28 information states "displaced threshold 339 feet" and "steep rise in ground 50 feet, from threshold east end of pavement".

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's misjudgment of altitude and distance to the runway during final approach, and his failure to attain the proper touchdown point for landing.