Piper PA46 N350XL

Summary

On 11 January 2020 at about 23:20 local time, a Piper PA46 registered N350XL, operated by Mission Flight Charter Services Llc, was involved in an accident near Bandera, Texas, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

11 January 2020 at 23:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Bandera, Texas, United States

Coordinates

29.4400, -98.5800

Aircraft

Piper PA46

Registration

N350XL

Category

Airplane

Year built

2015

Engines

1

Operator

Mission Flight Charter Services Llc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Antonio → San Antonio

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN20LA058

Nobody was injured.

The in-flight electrical fire, which resulted in smoke in the cabin and an emergency landing. Contributing to the accident was the unsuitable terrain for the emergency landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During flight, the pilot observed a warning message on the primary flight display indicating “AVIFAN FAIL.” As he was trouble-shooting the electrical system, smoke began to enter the cabin from the front of the cockpit. The pilot suspected an electrical fire. He disconnected the autopilot, lowered the landing gear, and turned off the battery master switch. After he declared a “Mayday,” the pilot searched for the nearest airport, which was about 13-miles from his position. Smoke was still coming into the cabin, and the pilot's "eyes were burning." The pilot decided that he had to land the airplane without delay because of the potential fire. He decided to land the airplane in what appeared to be a flat field directly ahead. As the airplane approached the landing point, the pilot extended the first notch of flaps, the airplane crossed over a fence, and landed. The pilot immediately realized that the airplane was fast and on a collision course with another fence and trees, so he rotated the airplane and cleared the obstacles. He immediately turned the airplane to the right and landed the airplane on an adjacent roadway. Upon landing, the airplane hit a roadway signpost with the right wing and the airplane spun 90 degrees to the right, and came to rest with the nose against a roadway guardrail. The outboard section of the right wing sustained substantial damage. Detailed examination of the airplane’s electrical system revealed thermal damage and discoloration on a circuit board of one of the avionics cooling fans. The thermal damage to the fan circuit board would have likely produced smoke that would be irritating to the eyes, which was consistent with what the pilot reported. No other damage or electrical anomalies were found during the examination.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.