Piper PA 32R-300 N32KK

Summary

On 8 July 2016 at about 21:17 local time, a Piper PA 32R-300 registered N32KK was involved in an accident near Houston, Texas, United States. 4 people were on board and 4 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

8 July 2016 at 21:17

Classification

Accident

Location

Houston, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

West Houston Airport (IWS)

Coordinates

29.8172, -95.6658

Aircraft

Piper PA 32R-300

Registration

N32KK

Category

Airplane

Year built

1976

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Houston → Fredericksburg

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN16FA261

4 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed after becoming distracted by the open baggage door while operating in the airport traffic pattern, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and experiencing an aerodynamic stall at a low altitude. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to ensure that the forward baggage compartment door was closed, latched, and properly secured during his preflight inspection.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot was departing on a cross-country flight in the airplane when the forward baggage compartment door opened shortly before the airplane rotated for liftoff near midfield. The pilot continued the takeoff on runway heading to about 100 ft above ground level before entering a left turn. The airplane continued to turn left until it was on a downwind heading, and then it entered an aerodynamic stall/spin and descended nose-down into terrain. Flight track data revealed that the airplane's ground speed decreased from 84 knots to 1 knot during the final 4 seconds of the flight, consistent with the airplane entering an aerodynamic stall/spin. None of the witnesses reported hearing any engine anomalies during the accident flight. The postaccident investigation determined that the forward baggage compartment door separated during the airplane's impact with terrain. The door latch mechanism was found unlatched, and its corresponding key-lock assembly was unlocked. No anomalies were found with the forward baggage door latch mechanism, key-lock, or door frame latch catch/receptacle that would have precluded the door from being properly secured before the flight. Based on the witness descriptions and the physical evidence, it is likely that the pilot failed to ensure that the forward baggage compartment door was closed, latched, and properly secured during his preflight inspection. The pilot likely became distracted by the open baggage door and, as a result, did not maintain adequate airspeed while on the downwind leg, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and experiencing an aerodynamic stall at a low altitude.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.