Piper PA-23-160 N4391P
27 January 1989 · Carson City, Nevada, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 27 January 1989 at about 20:52 local time, a Piper PA-23-160 registered N4391P was involved in an accident near Carson City, Nevada, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 20:52
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Carson City, Nevada, United States
- Nearest airport
- Carson City (004)
- Coordinates
- 39.1396, -119.7094
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-23-160
- Registration
- N4391P
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Carson City → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- SEA89FA040
People
1 person died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
LOSS OF POWER ON THE LEFT ENGINE DUE TO A FOREIGN OBJECT WHICH OBSTRUCTED THE FUEL FLOW, AND THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN AIRSPEED ABOVE VMC DURING HIS ATTEMPTED RETURN TO THE AIRFIELD. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE LACK OF RECENT FLIGHT TIME BY THE PILOT.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
WHILE ON CROSSWIND LEG AFTER T/O, THE PILOT ANNOUNCED HE HAD LOST AN ENGINE AND WAS RETURNING TO LAND. DURING A LEFT TURN BACK TOWARD THE ARPT, THE ACFT ROLLED INVERTED TO THE LEFT AND DESCENDED IN A NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE UNTIL IMPACT. EXAM REVEALED AN EXTRA NEEDLE VALVE LOOSE IN THE LEFT ENG CARBURETOR FLOAT BOWL. ANOTHER NEEDLE VALVE AND SEAT ASSEMBLY WAS CORRECTLY INSTALLED IN THE CARBURETOR. NUMEROUS SMOOTH BRIGHT SPOTS OF WEAR WERE FOUND ON THE BOTTOM SURFACE OF THE GRAINY TEXTURED INTERIOR OF THE FLOAT BOWL. THE AREA AROUND THE FUEL MIXTURE METERING ASSEMBLY PORT WAS POLISHED AND THE NEEDLE VALVE COULD BE INSERTED IN THE PORT. MAINTENANCE RECORDS REVEALED NEW ENGINES HAD BEEN INSTALLED ON 10/30/79. ALTHOUGH RECORDS AND WITNESSES INDICATED POWER PROBLEMS WITH THE LEFT ENGINE, NO RECORDS INDICATED THE CARBURETOR FLOAT BOWL HAD EVER BEEN REMOVED AFTER THE ENGINE HAD INITIALLY BEEN INSTALLED ON THE AIRCRAFT.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Piper PA-23 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Jun 1989 | Piper PA-23-250 | Fort Worth, Texas, United States | Rhima, Bassiony | No injuries | - |
| 20 Jun 1989 | Piper PA-23-250 | Stanley, Idaho, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 27 Aug 1989 | Piper PA-23-160 | Eau Claire, Wisconsin, United States | Virgil L. Barnes | No injuries | - |
| 29 Oct 1989 | Piper PA-23-150 | Wytheville, Virginia, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 26 Nov 1989 | Piper PA-23-160 | New Bern, North Carolina, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 3 Dec 1989 | Piper PA-23-150 | Jackson, Tennessee, United States | Bolivar Aircraft Sales | No injuries | - |
All 1,716 records for this type
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 Nov 1989 | Piper PA-32-300 | Boulder City, Nevada, United States | Bellis, James E. | No injuries | - |
| 19 Nov 1989 | Balloon Works FIREFLY 7 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Richard K. Tanner | Minor injuries | - |
| 29 Jan 1989 | Aeronca O-58B | Minden, Nevada, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 23 Feb 1989 | Mooney M20K | Incline Village, Nevada, United States | Performance Aircraft, Inc. | Minor injuries | - |
| 2 Apr 1989 | Cessna 172P | Hawthorne, Nevada, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 14 Jan 1989 | Cessna 210 | Carson City, Nevada, United States | - | No injuries | - |