Piper PA28 N9494J

Summary

On 2 May 2018 at about 02:48 local time, a Piper PA28 registered N9494J was involved in an accident near Pine Spring, Texas, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

2 May 2018 at 02:48

Classification

Accident

Location

Pine Spring, Texas, United States

Coordinates

31.7581, -104.7764

Aircraft

Piper PA28

Registration

N9494J

Category

Airplane

Year built

1966

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Eldorado → El Paso

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

GAA18CA347

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate altitude while flying over mountainous terrain in turbulent wind conditions at night, which resulted in a tree strike.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, while en route in mountainous terrain at night at 6,500 ft, he encountered turbulence and downdrafts, during which time, he "felt a couple of impacts on the left side." He continued to the destination airport, where he noticed the ELT was transmitting over the radio. During the landing, the left main landing gear collapsed. The pilot reported that he initially thought the airplane had struck a bird, but postaccident examination revealed that the left wing had impacted a tree. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.