Piper PA-23-250 N5941Y

Summary

On 14 September 2006 at about 23:53 local time, a Piper PA-23-250 registered N5941Y was involved in an accident near Fort Meade, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

14 September 2006 at 23:53

Classification

Accident

Location

Fort Meade, Florida, United States

Coordinates

27.7417, -81.7792

Aircraft

Piper PA-23-250

Registration

N5941Y

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Public Use

Purpose of flight

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bartow → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

DEN06GA128

2 people died.

A loss of power in the right engine while manuevering for reasons undetermined, and failure to maintain aircraft control which resulted in an inadvertent stall. Contributing factors were the airspeed below Vmc, and an altitude too low to afford a safe recovery..

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane was being used for mosquito control and was carrying Scourge insecticide (Bayer), a mixture of resmethrin, piperonyl butoxide, and naphtalene. A witness said the airplane passed overhead at low altitude. He heard the engines "throttle back, then rev up and sputter." He said he could tell the right engine was sputtering because "the propeller was turning slowly." He saw the airplane pitch up, roll to the right, and descend into the ground. The airplane immediately caught fire. The on-scene investigation revealed one blade on the left propeller assembly was curled aft and the other blade was curled forward. One blade on the right propeller assembly was curled aft and the other blade was straight. Both engines later were disassembled and inspected. Crankshaft rotation produced camshaft, valve, and accessory drive continuity on both engines. No anomalies were noted with either engine's lubrication, induction, fuel injector, exhaust, and ignition systems. Examination of the spark plugs and cylinders revealed normal burn patterns and color. All cylinders produced compression except the right engine's number 6 cylinder. According to the manufacturer, its intake and exhaust valve springs had lost tension as a result of having been exposed to the fire. Both the left and right propeller governor controls were in the high rpm position.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.