Accident Piper PA-44-180 Seminole N2922X,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 1812
 
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Date:Friday 8 February 2008
Time:20:26
Type:Silhouette image of generic PA44 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Piper PA-44-180 Seminole
Owner/operator:Gavin Aviation
Registration: N2922X
MSN: 44-7995309
Year of manufacture:1979
Total airframe hrs:5200 hours
Engine model:Lycoming LO-360-E1A6D
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3
Aircraft damage: Substantial
Category:Accident
Location:near Lake Piru, CA -   United States of America
Phase: Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.)
Nature:Training
Departure airport:Camarillo Airport, CA (KCMA)
Destination airport:
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The CFI certified flight instructor reported that during a night time training flight, the student pilot was conducting a series of simulated instrument approaches when the airplane started to encounter light to moderate turbulence. As the CFI and student pilot terminated one of the practice approaches, the airplane encountered "severe turbulence" followed by both engines losing power. The CFI initiated a forced landing to a dark area adjacent to a highway. During the descent, the CFI stated he was able to restart the left engine but had no throttle response and was unable to restart the right engine. As the descent continued, the CFI "…pulled both mixtures back to idle cutoff and pulled the fuel valves to off." He added that he was unable to see the ground until the airplane was about 50 feet above ground level. Subsequently, the airplane impacted trees and the ground before it came to rest within a small open field. The pilot-rated student receiving instruction reported while maneuvering the turbulence "became extreme" and the "airplane jolted strongly." The student pilot recalled that after the turbulence encounter, both engines lost power and despite numerous attempts, the engines would not restart. The student pilot stated after the landing, he attempted to secure the airplane and noted he was unable to move the fuel selectors to the "OFF" position and that the fuel selectors were "jammed/broken." Recovery personnel reported that 20 gallons of 100-low led fuel were drained from each wing fuel tank. Examination of the recovered airframe and fuel system revealed no evidence of pre-impact anomalies. Examination of the left and right engines and system components revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical anomalies.
Probable Cause: The loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. Contributing factors were the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing and dark night conditions.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: SEA08LA073
Status: Investigation completed
Duration:
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
11-Feb-2008 00:20 harro Added
25-Feb-2008 11:04 harro Updated
02-Feb-2010 10:58 PL Updated [Cn, Narrative]
21-Dec-2016 19:13 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
21-Dec-2016 19:14 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
21-Dec-2016 19:16 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
21-Dec-2016 19:20 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
03-Dec-2017 09:34 ASN Update Bot Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
17-Nov-2022 19:50 Ron Averes Updated [Aircraft type, Departure airport]

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