ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 282873
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| Date: | Wednesday 14 September 2022 |
| Time: | 23:00 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-32-300 Cherokee Six |
| Owner/operator: | BRH Bilbo Holdings LLC |
| Registration: | N2104J |
| MSN: | 32-7940017 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1979 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Afton, VA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Martinsville-Blue Ridge Airport, VA (KMTV) |
| Smoketown Airport, PA (S37) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On September 14, 2022, about 2300 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-32-300, N2104J, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Afton, Virginia. The private pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.
During a night cross-country flight over remote mountainous terrain, the pilot reported a total loss of engine power to air traffic control. He attempted to glide to a nearby airport, but the airplane impacted trees about 15 miles from the airport.
Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that the crankshaft could not be rotated by hand and about 1 quart of oil remained in the sump. No oil was observed on the ramp at the departure airport and no oil streaks were observed on the airframe, but postimpact fire consumed a majority of the airframe. Teardown examination of the engine revealed that the Nos. 3, 4, 5, and 6, connecting rods likely failed as a result of oil starvation. A crack was noted in the oil sump, but metallurgical examination revealed overstress features consistent with impact forces and thermal stress, indicating that the damage was likely sustained during impact; no fatigue was observed. Due to fire and impact damage, the investigation could not determine the reason for the oil starvation/loss that ultimately resulted in the loss of engine power.
Probable Cause: A catastrophic engine failure due to oil starvation, which resulted in a total loss of engine power at night over mountainous terrain.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://www.blueridgelife.com/2022/09/15/albemarle-vsp-investigating-overnight-plane-crash-near-stillhouse-creek-rd-miller-lake/?fbclid=IwAR2dgKM5ujrhWWYh4kp4qzX-gCZpuLLUXz6nz2vphK2g0eNMGUkuuAJ8jno
https://eu.newsleader.com/story/news/local/2022/09/15/plane-crash-kills-one-in-albemarle-county/69496012007/
https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=105942
https://registry.faa.gov/AircraftInquiry/Search/NNumberResult?nNumberTxt=N2104J
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N2104J/history/20220915/0208Z/KMTV/L%2037.97368%20-78.74248
https://globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=a1bc6f&lat=37.871&lon=-79.037&zoom=10.0&showTrace=2022-09-15
ATC recording (start at the 24-minute point) https://archive.liveatc.net/kcho/KCHO3-Twr-App-Sep-15-2022-0230Z.mp3
https://www.aircraft.com/aircraft/31007537/n2104j-1979-piper-cherokee-6-slash-300 (photo)
Location
Media:
NTSB investigating the Sept. 15, crash of a Piper PA32 aircraft near Charlottesville, Virginia.
— NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) September 15, 2022
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 15-Sep-2022 13:07 | Captain Adam | Added |
| 15-Sep-2022 13:21 | Captain Adam | Updated [Date, Time, Registration, Cn, Operator, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Embed code] |
| 15-Sep-2022 13:36 | RobertMB | Updated [Nature, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 15-Sep-2022 13:42 | RobertMB | Updated [Source] |
| 15-Sep-2022 18:26 | RobertMB | Updated [Aircraft type] |
| 16-Sep-2022 02:39 | johnwg | Updated [Time, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
| 17-Sep-2022 05:29 | Anon. | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 18-Sep-2022 12:46 | Anon. | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 19-Sep-2022 07:29 | Anon. | Updated [Source] |
| 21-Sep-2022 21:29 | Captain Adam | Updated [Time, Source, Narrative, Category] |
| 28-Oct-2022 15:42 | Anon. | Updated [Narrative] |
| 29-Mar-2024 18:19 | Captain Adam | Updated [Location, Source, Narrative, Accident report] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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