Piper PA-28-180 N9166J

Summary

On 5 December 2023 at about 02:30 local time, a Piper PA-28-180 registered N9166J, operated by Red Rock Flying School LLC, was involved in an accident near Mesa, Arizona, United States. 2 people were 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

5 December 2023 at 02:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Mesa, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Phoenix-Mesa Gateway (IWA)

Coordinates

33.3078, -111.6555

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-180

Registration

N9166J

Category

Airplane

Year built

1966

Engines

1

Operator

Red Rock Flying School LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Mesa → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

WPR24LA051

Nobody was injured.

A failure of the engine cowling right side latch pin and fasteners, which resulted in the partial separation of the engine cowling during flight.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the flight instructor, while in cruise flight transitioning between airports, the right side of the engine upper cowling came unlatched and struck the windshield. The left side of the upper cowling remained attached, and the pilot landed without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the windshield. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the right front fastener pin, which secures the front of the upper cowling adjacent to the air intake, had separated from the cowling structure. This likely allowed the forward right side of the upper cowling to separate from the lower cowling and move up into the airstream, resulting in the overload failure of the right side cowling latches.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.