Beech King Air 200, Bay View, Texas, Dec. 10, 2004–The ATP pilot’s failure to maintain directional control as a result of his improper runway selection was blamed for the Charter One King Air’s crash into trees on takeoff from Rancho Buena Vista Airport. The right quartering 14-knot tailwind was a contributing factor. The runway was a 3,500-foot grass strip.
The 5,800-hour pilot said that at approximately 95 knots, “The airplane yawed left and rolled left abruptly as [it] came off the ground briefly.” It settled back onto the ground, then climbed back into the air approximately 20 degrees left of the runway heading. A passenger said that he thought the tail of the airplane hit the ground on the pilot’s third attempt to lift off and he noticed the flaps were up during takeoff. The King Air was destroyed, but the pilot and five passengers were not injured.