ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 312036
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| Date: | Wednesday 3 May 2023 |
| Time: | 13:29 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-34-200 Seneca |
| Owner/operator: | Wings Over Texas Holding LLC/DBA US Aviation Academy |
| Registration: | N28HE |
| MSN: | 34-7350278 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1973 |
| Engine model: | Lycoming IO360 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Coldspring, Texas -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | Conroe-North Houston Regional Airport, TX (CXO/KCXO) |
| Conroe-North Houston Regional Airport, TX (CXO/KCXO) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On May 3, 2023, about 1329 central daylight time, a Piper PA-34-200 airplane, N28HE, sustained substantial damage when it was involved in an accident near Coldspring, Texas. The pilot examiner and flight instructor sustained serious injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 pilot certification flight.
According to the pilot examiner, following steep turn maneuvers, they heard a loud “pop” from the tail of the airplane, the nose abruptly pitched up, and the airplane entered an accelerated stall. He took control of the airplane and added power to recover from the stall, at which time they heard another loud bang and the nose of the airplane pitched abruptly down. He reduced power to idle, there was another bang, and once again, the airplane pitched up uncontrollably. This time he did not add power and the nose of the airplane pitched down, but not as severely and he was able to use the engine power to dampen the pitch oscillations. Unable to maintain full control of the airplane, he elected for an emergency, off-airport landing. The airplane contacted trees while on approach to the field. The airplane landed hard, bounced, and slid through a rough, muddy field, which resulted in substantial damage to both wings, the fuselage, and empennage.
A postaccident examination revealed that the bolt that connects the stabilator trim rod assembly to the stabilator link assembly was missing and not located.
Since the bolt was not recovered, the reason for the separation could not be determined. Without being able to determine the reason for the separation, the flight school proactively inspected all same model airplanes in their fleet and replaced the bolt on each of them.
Probable Case: The stabilator trim rod assembly separated from the stabilator link assembly due to a missing connecting bolt, which resulted in the pilot’s inability to maintain pitch control of the airplane.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2023/05/03/emergency-crews-at-scene-of-small-plane-crash-in-san-jacinto-county/?fbclid=IwAR0-_C5w8950SatsV-jN-Ln4ubph_teSdRm_ikeb4nVmOIwgW97JbFMZbRQ
https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=107813
https://registry.faa.gov/AircraftInquiry/Search/NNumberResult?nNumberTxt=28HE
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N28HE
https://globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=a2cc56&lat=30.581&lon=-95.232&zoom=14.9&showTrace=2023-05-03&leg=1
https://www.usaviationacademy.com/conroe-texas-houston-flight-school/
https://cdn.jetphotos.com/full/5/51043_1655688714.jpg (photo)
Location
Images:
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 03-May-2023 21:48 | Captain Adam | Added |
| 04-May-2023 00:46 | johnwg | Updated |
| 07-Jun-2023 21:58 | Captain Adam | Updated |
| 06-Oct-2023 15:11 | Captain Adam | Updated |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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