Piper PA34 N294AB

Summary

On 7 July 2018 at about 14:20 local time, a Piper PA34 registered N294AB was involved in an accident near Gulf Shores, Alabama, United States. 5 people were on board and 5 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

7 July 2018 at 14:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Gulf Shores, Alabama, United States

Nearest airport

Jack Edwards National (JKA)

Coordinates

30.2897, -87.6717

Aircraft

Piper PA34

Registration

N294AB

Category

Airplane

Year built

1981

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lafayette → Gulf Shores

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA18LA186

5 people had minor injuries.

The pilot's improper preflight and in-flight fuel planning, which resulted in fuel exhaustion to the left engine and a total loss of engine power during an attempted go-around maneuver.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot departed in the twin-engine airplane with an estimated quantity of fuel. While landing at the destination airport, the airplane bounced and the pilot aborted the landing. During the subsequent climb, the left engine surged several times before it lost all power. The pilot attempted to restore left engine power by placing the auxiliary fuel pump switch to "high" and selecting "crossfeed" on the left fuel selector, but restoration of continuous engine power was unsuccessful. When the left engine stopped producing power, the stall horn sounded, and the controls "started to buffet." The pilot said that he had "no time" to consult the emergency checklist and considered multiple forced landing areas before he chose to land straight ahead into trees. The airplane came to rest upright with substantial damage to both wings and the fuselage. There was an odor of fuel at the scene, but there was no evidence of fuel or fuel spillage. Examination and testing of the engines revealed no pre-impact mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The airplane's best single-engine rate of climb given the conditions present at the time of the accident was about 280 ft per minute.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.