NTSB Factual Report

On May 26, 2014, about 1840 central daylight time, a Beech A36, N188DP, was substantially damaged when the engine lost power and the pilot made a forced landing on a road near Rockdale, Texas. The pilot and three passengers on board were not injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by Pilots Choice Aviation, Inc., Georgetown Texas, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and an instrument flight rules flight plan had been filed. The flight originated from Huntsville Municipal Airport (KUTS), Huntsville, Texas, at 1825, and was en route to Georgetown Municipal Airport (KGTU), Georgetown, Texas.

According to the pilot's statements, both main fuel tanks were filled to capacity, but the auxiliary tanks were not serviced. The first leg of the flight from New Orleans, Louisiana, to Huntsville, Texas, was uneventful. The pilot elected to go to Huntsville due to the weather conditions in the Austin, Texas, area. After spending several hours at Huntsville, the pilot and his family departed for Georgetown. About 20 minutes into the flight, the engine made "an abrupt change in sound" and the engine began to lose power. All cylinder EGTs (exhaust gas temperature) were above 1500 degrees Celsius (C.) Switching from the right tank to the left tank did not restore power, so the pilot returned the selector to the right tank. The pilot advanced the mixture, throttle, and propeller control full forward and noticed the cylinder EGTs were registering 200 degrees. He advised air traffic control that his engine was losing power and was given radar vectors to the H.H. Coffield Regional Airport (KRCK), about 4 miles southwest of the flight's position. The pilot subsequently declared an emergency. Unable to glide to the runway, the pilot made a forced landing on uneven terrain near County Road 322. The right main landing gear did not extend fully prior to touch down and the airplane ground looped. The fuselage was buckled and the outboard portion of the right wing was torn off.

Under the auspices of the National Transportation Safety Board, the engine was functionally tested at Air Salvage of Dallas in Lancaster, Texas, on July 21. The engine tested satisfactory at all power settings and no anomalies were noted.

NTSB Probable Cause

A loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident testing revealed no anomalies.