Piper PA32R N3445Q

Summary

On 10 October 2020 at about 18:30 local time, a Piper PA32R registered N3445Q, operated by Kenneth Best, was involved in an accident near Kimberling City, Missouri, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

10 October 2020 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Kimberling City, Missouri, United States

Nearest airport

Kimberling Airport (MO64)

Coordinates

36.6263, -93.4239

Aircraft

Piper PA32R

Registration

N3445Q

Category

Airplane

Operator

Kenneth Best

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN21LA014

2 people were seriously injured.

The pilot’s inadequate preflight inspection, which resulted in his inadvertent departure with the tow bar connected to the nose wheel, and the low approach while returning to the airport, which allowed the tow bar to contact trees.  

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he moved the airplane out of the hangar using a tow bar and his personal vehicle. The pilot added that he did not remove the tow bar from the airplane. The pilot and passenger then departed on a cross-country flight. Witnesses at the airport notified the pilot by radio that the tow bar was still attached. The plot then entered the traffic pattern to land at the airport. During the approach the tow bar, which was hanging from the airplane’s nose wheel, impacted and got entangled in trees. The airplane then impacted ground objects and terrain. A post-crash fire ensued and destroyed the airplane. The pilot added that he did not know why he got so low on the approach to the airport.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.