ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 37843
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| Date: | Friday 15 April 1994 |
| Time: | 11:00 LT |
| Type: |  Piper PA-28-181 |
| Owner/operator: | Pass, Max E. Jr. & Martha N. |
| Registration: | N39770 |
| MSN: | 28-7990018 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1978 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 1592 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O-360-A4M |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Opelika, AL -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Plant City, FL (X17) |
| Clarksville, TN (KCKV) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
THE NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT WAS ON A FLIGHT FROM PLANT CITY, FL, TO CLARKSVILLE, TN. NO FLIGHT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED. LOCAL WITNESSES STATED THERE WERE BLACK CLOUDS IN THE ACCIDENT AREA; THEY ESTIMATED THE CEILING WAS ABOUT 800'. THE WIND WAS FROM THE NORTHWEST & GUSTY. THE AIRCRAFT WAS SEEN TO EXIT THE BASE OF THE CLOUDS IN A NOSE DOWN SPIRAL. AN IN-FLIGHT BREAKUP OF THE AIRCRAFT OCCURRED; WRECKAGE WAS FOUND OVER A 1500' AREA. THE RIGHT WING, BOTH STABILATORS & THE VERTICAL STABILIZER WERE FOUND AT A REMOTE DISTANCE FROM THE MAIN WRECKAGE. UPWARD DEFORMATION WAS FOUND, WHERE THE RIGHT WING & STABILATORS HAD SEPARATED. RECORDS SHOWED THAT ON 12/30/93, MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL HAD REPLACED BOTH REAR FUSELAGE-TO-WING ATTACH POINT BRACKETS. THE REAR ATTACH POINT BRACKETS WERE FOUND IN PLACE FOR BOTH WINGS (ON BOTH SIDES OF THE FUSELAGE), BUT NEITHER THE RIGHT NOR THE LEFT WING REAR ATTACH BOLT WAS FOUND. NO SIGN OF STRETCHING OR STRESS WAS FOUND AT THE BOLT HOLES IN THE BRACKETS. THE PILOT HAD ACCUMULATED 18 HOURS OF FLIGHT TIME IN PREPARATION FOR AN INSTRUMENT RATING & HAD PASSED THE WRITTEN TEST, BUT HE HAD NOT TAKEN A PRACTICAL TEST FOR THE RATING.
Probable Cause: LOSS OF AIRCRAFT CONTROL FOR AN UNKNOWN REASON. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE WEATHER CONDITIONS (CLOUDS WITH LOW CEILING), CONTINUED VFR FLIGHT BY THE PILOT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC), THE PILOT'S LACK OF INSTRUMENT EXPERIENCE, AND FAILURE OF MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL TO INSTALL THE REAR WING-TO-FUSELAGE ATTACH BOLTS.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB ATL94FA082
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 24-Oct-2008 10:30 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:23 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 10-Apr-2024 08:02 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Operator, Other fatalities, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Accident report] |
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