Piper PA28 N8225N

Summary

On 13 July 2023 at about 16:57 local time, a Piper PA28 registered N8225N was involved in an accident near Osage Beach, Missouri, United States. 3 people were on board and 2 died, one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 July 2023 at 16:57

Classification

Accident

Location

Osage Beach, Missouri, United States

Coordinates

38.1211, -92.6883

Aircraft

Piper PA28

Registration

N8225N

Category

Airplane

Year built

1969

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN23FA304

2 people died.

The pilot’s failure to properly set the stabilator trim before takeoff, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack and an aerodynamic stall during takeoff.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The surviving passenger reported that the airplane did not seem to be climbing as well as it should have during the takeoff for the local sightseeing flight. The passenger believed the pilot was perhaps fighting the flight controls for an unknown reason. Shortly after takeoff, the airplane made a “violent turn” to the right, and it seemed like the airplane went straight down. The turn to the right and the airplane going straight down seemed to happen at the same time. The airplane came to rest nose down near multiple large trees. The accident site was about 0.55 mile from the departure end of the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, both wings, and the empennage. Two witnesses reported observing the airplane during the takeoff with its nose “pitched up in the air” and “the tail was lower than the nose.” A review of local area surveillance video recordings showed the airplane in flight with a nose-up attitude. Examination of the wreckage did not reveal any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airframe or the engine that would have precluded normal operation. During the examination, the stabilator trim was found in the full nose-up position. The takeoff checklist for the airplane included instructions to properly set the stabilator trim before takeoff. The passenger did not recall if the pilot used the checklist or adjusted the stabilator trim once before takeoff. It is likely that the stabilator trim position resulted in the airplane's extreme nose-up attitude, which led to an exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack and an aerodynamic stall during the takeoff. It is also likely the stabilator trim was left at the setting from when the airplane landed at the airport the day before. It was undetermined why the pilot did not set the stabilator trim before takeoff.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.