Piper PA-30 N7657Y

Summary

On 3 July 2009 at about 16:35 local time, a Piper PA-30 registered N7657Y, operated by Alan Muhs, was involved in an accident near Tucson, Arizona, United States. 4 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 3 had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 July 2009 at 16:35

Classification

Accident

Location

Tucson, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Tucson International Airport (TUS)

Coordinates

32.1158, -110.9408

Aircraft

Piper PA-30

Registration

N7657Y

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Alan Muhs

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Tucson → Show Low

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR09LA324

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain directional and lateral aircraft control during takeoff. Contributing to the accident was the partial loss of left engine power for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that after advancing the mixtures to full rich and turning on the fuel boost pumps, he advanced the throttles for takeoff. During the takeoff roll he noticed that the fuel flow on the left engine was a bit excessive. He stated that, as the airplane lifted off the runway at an airspeed of 80 miles per hour, the twin-engine airplane started to veer to the left. Despite the pilot’s control inputs the airplane continued to veer to the left and subsequently impacted the ground, which resulted in structural damage to both wings, empennage, and fuselage. Local law enforcement reported that following the accident the pilot stated that as the airplane was about 30 feet above the ground, “he lost power to the left engine” and was “unable to stabilize the aircraft.” Examination of the left engine revealed that all four top spark plugs were black with soot within the electrode area. The left engine fuel servo was placed on a test bench and was found to be above factory service limitations at a setting consistent with takeoff, which would equate to a slightly rich condition. No anomalies were noted with the examination of the right engine. Examination of the airframe revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. According to the airframe manufacturer's approved flight manual, the published minimum control airspeed for single-engine operations is 90 mph.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.