Piper PA-46-350P XBLTH

Summary

On 16 May 2010 at about 14:13 local time, a Piper PA-46-350P registered XBLTH, operated by Ernesto Gonzalez, was involved in an accident near Clearwater, Florida, United States. 3 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured, one 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

16 May 2010 at 14:13

Classification

Accident

Location

Clearwater, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Clearwater Airpark (CLW)

Coordinates

27.9956, -82.7519

Aircraft

Piper PA-46-350P

Registration

XBLTH

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Ernesto Gonzalez

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Clearwater → Port-au-Prince

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA10LA267

2 people were seriously injured.

The overweight condition of the airplane due to the pilot's inadequate preflight planning, resulting in the airplane's degraded climb performance. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's retraction of the flaps prior to reaching the manufacturer's recommended flap retraction speed.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane was loaded more than 500 pounds (about 12 percent) over the certificated maximum gross weight. The airplane lifted off from the 3,500-foot-long runway about one-half to two-thirds down the length of the runway. The pilot retracted the airplane's landing gear and flaps before reaching the airplane manufacturer's recommended retraction speeds. The airplane was unable to gain sufficient altitude and subsequently impacted trees and a house located beyond the departure end of the runway. A postaccident examination of the wreckage and recorded non-volatile memory revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical abnormalities.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.