Piper PA-32-300 N70NZ

Summary

On 31 March 2003 at about 22:00 local time, a Piper PA-32-300 registered N70NZ, operated by Travis Lee Butts, was involved in an accident near Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, United States. 3 people were on board and 3 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

31 March 2003 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, United States

Coordinates

36.0536, -95.7894

Aircraft

Piper PA-32-300

Registration

N70NZ

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Travis Lee Butts

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Tulsa → Tulsa

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW03FA120

3 people died.

Failure of the engine due to the blow-by condition in the number six cylinder for undetermined reasons, which resulted in oil starvation and eventual failure of the associated connecting rod end cap. Also causal was the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed during the forced landing, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and subsequent collision with terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stalled the airplane, which impacted terrain in a nose down pitch attitude after the engine experienced a total loss of power. Numerous witnesses observed smoke trailing from the airplane; one of which observed the smoke up to nine minutes prior to the accident. The pilot reported a loss of oil pressure and subsequent loss of engine power. Some witnesses observed the airplane stall, roll to the right, and descend vertically. The airplane exploded upon impact with the terrain. Post-accident examination of the engine revealed the number six connecting rod end cap failed due to oil starvation. The oil starvation resulted from a piston blow-by condition that formed in the number six cylinder. The blow-by condition resulted in crankcase pressurization and the loss of the oil through the breather tube. The blow-by condition also resulted in the burning of oil in the number six cylinder, which resulted in the smoke observed by the witnesses. The cause of the blow-by situation was not determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.