Piper PA22 N5581Z

Summary

On 20 October 2018 at about 04:30 local time, a Piper PA22 registered N5581Z was involved in an accident near Brownstown, Indiana, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

20 October 2018 at 04:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Brownstown, Indiana, United States

Coordinates

38.8428, -86.0639

Aircraft

Piper PA22

Registration

N5581Z

Category

Airplane

Year built

1962

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Indianapolis → Crossville

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

ERA19LA022

Nobody was injured.

The total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident examination of the engine revealed no mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Contributing to the outcome was the student pilot's improper decision to conduct a solo cross-country flight at night, which resulted in the airplane being destroyed when it impacted a wooded area that the student thought was an open field.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The student pilot was conducting a night, solo, cross-country flight, and while en route with the landing and taxi lights on, the cockpit panel lights on bright, and his cell phone and tablet charging from the electrical system, the airplane lost all electrical power, followed by the loss of all engine power. Subsequently, the student cycled both the electrical system master switch and the engine magneto switch twice, but electrical and engine power were not restored. The student navigated to a dark area below the airplane's flightpath hoping it was an open field, but the airplane subsequently impacted a heavily wooded area and then came to rest upright. The student was not injured, but the airplane was destroyed. The airplane's electrical system was equipped with a master switch that when turned on, routed all power through either a main or spare fuse. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the when the master switch was positioned to the spare fuse position the electrical system would not turn on because spare fuse had blown. The main fuse was intact, and when the electrical system was activated by toggling the master switch to the main fuse position, the electrical components powered on normally. Based on the student's account of the flight and the blown spare fuse, it is possible that, during the flight, the electrical load drew an excessive current through the selected spare fuse, which resulted in it blowing and interrupting electrical power. The student's reported inability to restore electrical power by selecting the main fuse with the master switch could not be duplicated during postaccident testing. Further, postaccident examination of the engine did not reveal any evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The reason for the loss of engine power could not be determined. The investigation determined that the student had not received a flight endorsement for the solo flight; thus, he should not have been conducting the flight; however, having an endorsement would not have better prepared the student to deal with the reported engine issue.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.