Piper PA-28RT-201T N2920C

Summary

On 13 April 2004 at about 23:50 local time, a Piper PA-28RT-201T registered N2920C was involved in an accident near Concord, California, United States. 3 people were on board. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 April 2004 at 23:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Concord, California, United States

Nearest airport

Buchanan Field (CCR)

Coordinates

37.9750, -122.0625

Aircraft

Piper PA-28RT-201T

Registration

N2920C

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Concord → Grand Junction

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX04FA187

Injuries not recorded.

a loss of engine power due to improper maintenance repair procedures and use of improper parts.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Following a loss of engine power in the takeoff initial climb, the airplane collided with vehicles during a forced landing on a freeway. During a cross-country flight the engine began to run rough and the pilot diverted to Concord. He phoned the FBO he rented the airplane from and advised them of the problem. The company contacted another maintenance facility at Concord who found a broken exhaust valve in the number 2 cylinder. The Concord maintenance facility estimated the repair job at 20 labor hours and the rental company declined to use them. The company dispatched a mechanic to Concord to make the repairs. The company mechanic replaced the number 2 cylinder and piston; however, he replaced the correct low compression piston with an incorrect high compression piston. He performed the work in just 3 hours. He failed to conduct a complete inspection of the engine for the missing pieces of the exhaust valve. After the mechanic verbally told the pilot the airplane was "good to go," the pilot fueled the airplane to capacity and completed the engine run up with no noted abnormalities. He departed using runway 19L, the shortest runway at CCR. When the airplane was about 150 to 200 feet above ground level, the pilot noted a loss of engine power. He decided he could not return to the airport and elected to land on the I-680 freeway. During the landing, the airplane collided with vehicles and came to rest in the center divider of the freeway. The airplane was largely consumed by the post impact fire. During the post accident engine examination, various determinations were made, including the following: Cylinders 2, 4, and 6 were mechanically damaged by a foreign object, most likely the number 2 exhaust valve head; the number 4 cylinder contained a foreign object that appeared to be a portion of the number 2 valve head; the spark plugs in cylinders 2, 4, and 6 were mechanically damaged with the electrode gaps closed or nearly so; cylinders number 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 contained improper pistons that were certified to be installed into IO-360 series engines not into the accident engine a TSIO-360-FB; and the turbocharger turbine wheel exhibited foreign object damage. The number 2 main bearing was rotated 90 degrees. The bearing rotation and fretting damage to the number 2 and 3 upper main bearing support and the numbers 6 through 11 backbone bolt locations indicate that the through bolts were inadequately torqued during the installation of the number 2 cylinder.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.