Piper PA-44-180 N53505

Summary

On 2 January 2004 at about 02:35 local time, a Piper PA-44-180 registered N53505, operated by Auburn Flight Service, Inc., was involved in an accident near Cave Junction, Oregon, United States. 4 people were on board and one died, 3 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

2 January 2004 at 02:35

Classification

Accident

Location

Cave Junction, Oregon, United States

Nearest airport

Illinois Valley (3S4)

Coordinates

42.0942, -123.6822

Aircraft

Piper PA-44-180

Registration

N53505

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Auburn Flight Service, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Oakland → North Bend

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

SEA04FA031

1 person died.

Both the pilot-in-command and the co-pilot allowing the aircraft to enter into an area of adverse weather (icing conditions at low [-20 degrees C] temperatures) resulting in sequential induction icing, induction filter blockage, carburetor icing and the subsequent partial loss of power in both engines followed by tree impact and collision with terrain during an emergency descent/approach. Contributing factors were icing conditions, low temperatures, night conditions and trees.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The two commercially certificated flying pilots, accompanied by an airline transport rated pilot and a second passenger, departed Oakland, California, en route to North Bend, Oregon. A weather briefing had been obtained indicating an AIRMET for rime icing from the freezing level to 18,000 feet. The aircraft departed late in the afternoon, climbed to 12,000 feet and occasionally climbed to 13,000 feet for short durations in order to remain VMC above a cloud layer. Night environmental conditions existed when both engines began losing power and the copilot radioed Seattle Center that the aircraft had encountered "way too much induction ice to the engines," declaring an emergency. The pilot-in-command reported the outside air temperature at the power loss was about -20 degrees Celsius and he immediately applied full carburetor heat and began trouble shooting the problem while descending back toward a nearby airport. Application of carburetor heat bypassed the ice blocked induction air filters allowing unfiltered, warmed air to flow directly to the carburetors. Remedial action by the crew failed to regain full power and the aircraft broke out of the cloud bases in heavy snow too far down the runway to effect a landing. The pilot then began a turn to line up and land on the adjacent highway just east of the runway during which the aircraft's right wing struck several trees and the aircraft impacted near the west edge of the highway a short distance beyond.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.