Event FTW98LA213

Factual narrative

On May 10, 1998, at 1630 mountain daylight time, a Beech A-36, N6150X, sustained substantial damage when it settled to the runway after the pilot retracted the landing gear following takeoff from Sierra Blanca Regional Airport, Ruidoso, New Mexico. The private pilot and his four passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for this cross-country flight to Clifton, Texas, operating under Title 14 CFR Part 91 and no flight plan was filed. According to the pilot, he received a weather briefing from Albuquerque Flight Service Station. The brief provided information that the weather could be expected to remain visual conditions with high winds and gusts. The pilot said he taxied to runway 24, did a normal run-up, and departed using a higher than normal rotation speed (82-85 knots) due to the gusty wind conditions. In his statement, the pilot indicated he started his climb out at 105 knots indicated airspeed (IAS) then "something pushed me down causing me to lose altitude", then the stall warning sounded and the aircraft settled onto the ground beside runway 24 with the landing gear and flaps retracted. Attached is a statement form the head linesman and a line service technician at Sierra Blanca Regional Airport. According to their statement, the pilot attempted one takeoff which he aborted midway through the takeoff roll. He taxied the aircraft back to the ramp and complained that the right wing was lower than the left. The lines people examined the aircraft and could find no discrepancies and the pilot redistributed some weight inside the cabin. These persons said he then taxied back for takeoff. The two airport employees said the ground speed appeared to be slow and the aircraft rotated for takeoff about mid field. According to their observations, the aircraft did not gain altitude and the pilot raised the landing gear when the aircraft appeared to be about 3/4 of the distance down the takeoff runway. They said, that immediately after the pilot raised the landing gear, "the aircraft stalled at about 40 feet above the airfield and fell." The two airport line service people responded to the accident in an airport vehicle and according to their statement the five people aboard were exiting the aircraft when they arrived on scene. There was no mention of injuries and the line people said they disconnected the aircraft battery and turned off the emergency locator transmitter which had activated. According to the Sierra Blanca Airport Automated Weather Observation System (AWOS ), the local weather was clear skies below 12,000 feet, 10 miles visibility, and the wind nearest the time of the accident,(1645 observation), was from 200 degrees magnetic heading at 17 knots with gusts to 24 knots. Examination of the aircraft by an FAA Inspector following the accident, provided no evidence of pre impact failure or malfunction. The inspector was unable to compile sufficient data to calculate weight and balance; thus, no meaningful performance calculations could be completed. During initial climb following takeoff on runway 24 with the wind from 200 degrees magnetic heading at 17 knots with gusts to 24 knots, the aircraft settled onto the ground about 3/4 of the distance down the runway. Witnesses said the aircraft appeared to rotate for takeoff at a slow speed and appeared to stall during initial climb after the pilot raised the landing gear. The pilot and his four passengers were not injured. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12