Piper PA-23-250 N4BN

Summary

On 7 May 1998 at about 22:40 local time, a Piper PA-23-250 registered N4BN was involved in an accident near Fargo, Georgia, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 May 1998 at 22:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Fargo, Georgia, United States

Nearest airport

Fargo (GA25)

Coordinates

30.6797, -82.5592

Aircraft

Piper PA-23-250

Registration

N4BN

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Crystal River

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA98FA155

1 person died.

the left engine propeller blades struck the runway surface during takeoff, resulting in the pilot losing control of the airplane, and subsequently impacting with trees.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Witnesses observed the airplane start its takeoff roll on a heading of 150 degrees, on a grass runway 2,200 feet long. About 800 feet from the start of the takeoff roll the airplane became airborne about 8 feet off the ground, then went nose and left wing low into the runway where the left propeller struck the grass surface. Twenty propeller slash marks were found in the grass surface at the point in the runway were the witnesses saw the propeller strike the ground. The airplane then took off, climbed about 50 feet above the ground, turned left, struck trees, impacted the ground and caught fire. According to a witnesses, the airplane had taxied to the takeoff point and the pilot did an engine run up. At this point the witness said, '...[the] aircraft's engine seemed to sputter (one), he took off from the [north] end. The aircraft took off, but didn't seem to climb. The aircraft settled back down, propeller started hitting [the] ground, then aircraft got airborne again, made it over oak tree (note cross wind from pilot's right side). Struck pine tree and [I] saw fire ball.' Witnesses described the winds as gusty and a direct crosswind from the right side of the runway to the left side, with occasional shifts in the wind from the northwest. The reported winds about 40 miles west of the crash site were: winds from 220 degrees at 14 knots. Both engines were partially disassembled and no discrepancies were found. Examination of runway 15 revealed 20 propeller slash marks were found on the left side of the runway, on a heading of 150 degrees, and were measured at a total distance of 453 feet, 3 inches. The distances between the first and second slash marks was 2 feet. The distances between last two slash marks was 61 feet. It was determined that the ground speed of the airplane between the first slash mark and the second slash mark was 101.9 miles per hour.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.