Piper PA-30 N4009Y

Summary

On 23 August 2022 at about 17:45 local time, a Piper PA-30 registered N4009Y was involved in an accident near St Ignatius, Montana, United States. 2 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

23 August 2022 at 17:45

Classification

Accident

Location

St Ignatius, Montana, United States

Nearest airport

St Ignatius (52S)

Coordinates

47.3250, -114.0808

Aircraft

Piper PA-30

Registration

N4009Y

Category

Airplane

Year built

1964

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Ronan

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR22LA313

1 person had minor injuries.

A partial loss of power during takeoff for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was repositioning the airplane to a local airport for maintenance and an annual inspection. The pilot stated the engine start and runup were normal. During takeoff, shortly after the airplane exited ground effect, the left engine had a partial loss of power. The pilot saw powerlines and, to avoid them, initiated a forced landing on a road just past the end of the runway. Postaccident examination of the airframe and engine did not reveal any mechanical anomalies that existed before the impact. The pilot reported that the airplane sat idle for several years and he last added fuel to the airplane about 2 years before the accident. A fuel sample from the accident airplane was green in color, consistent with the introduction of copper to aviation grade gasoline, which typically presents after the fuel has been stagnant for over 2 years. Although it’s possible that the condition of the fuel affected its combustion properties, further testing of the accident fuel for combustion could not be completed due to the disposal of the recovered fuel.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.