Piper PA32 N4089R

Summary

On 19 August 2020 at about 16:15 local time, a Piper PA32 registered N4089R was involved in an accident near Tallahassee, Florida, United States. 3 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

19 August 2020 at 16:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Tallahassee, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Tallahassee Intl (TLH)

Coordinates

30.4094, -84.3583

Aircraft

Piper PA32

Registration

N4089R

Category

Airplane

Year built

1967

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Tallahassee → Fort Pierce

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA20LA290

1 person had minor injuries.

A partial loss of engine power on takeoff due to an intermittently blocked fuel injector on the number 3 cylinder.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot performed a preflight inspection of the airplane with no anomalies noted; during the engine run-up, the engine backfired. The pilot continued the run-up procedures and did not have any other issues with the engine. After rotation, the pilot noticed that the tachometer did not indicate full engine rpm, and also noted that the engine was not producing power. Since the airspeed was slow, he attempted to decrease the pitch of the airplane; however, the airplane was already in an aerodynamic stall, which resulted in impact with the runway. The airplane departed the right side of the runway and impacted the visual approach light system lights, resulting in substantial damage to the right wing. A postaccident examination and test run of the engine revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. A review of data extracted from the airplane’s engine data monitor data revealed that the number 3 cylinder began performing erratically beginning around 7 minutes after the recording began, likely as the airplane was being taxied, and continued through the run-up described by the pilot. This erratic behavior initially appeared as rapid increases and decreases in exhaust gas temperature (EGT) that differed dramatically from the behavior of the other 5 cylinders. Then, about 3 minutes after the erratic EGT temperatures began, the number 3 cylinder head temperature (CHT) began steadily decreasing, while the remaining 5 cylinders continued their gradual increase. The takeoff likely began about 11 minutes and 30 seconds after the data recording began, as the engine rpm increased to about 2,400 (which was less than the maximum 2,700 rpm that was observed during the three previous takeoffs that were recorded). Given this information, the most likely explanation for the observed EGT and CHT behaviors was that the number 3 cylinder fuel injector was being intermittently blocked. As the fuel mixture leaned due to the blockage, it produced the spikes observed in EGT, and the blockage eventually progressed to a point where the cylinder was no longer producing power, resulting in the observed gradual CHT cooling. Postaccident examination of the number 3 cylinder fuel injector showed that it was absent of debris and deposits; therefore, the nature and origin of the blockage could not be definitively determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.