ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 44863
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| Date: | Thursday 13 May 2004 |
| Time: | 07:00 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-44-180 Seminole |
| Owner/operator: | Westwind Aviation Inc |
| Registration: | N4144C |
| MSN: | 4496020 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1998 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 3543 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Wittmann, AZ -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | Phoenix-Deer Valley Airport, AZ (DVT/KDVT) |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On May 13, 2004, about 0700 mountain standard time, a Piper PA-44-180, N4144C, collided with terrain near Whittman, Arizona. Westwind Aviation, Inc., was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The certified flight instructor (CFI), the private pilot undergoing instruction (PUI) and one passenger sustained fatal injuries; the airplane was destroyed. The local instructional flight departed Deer Valley Airport, Phoenix, Arizona, about 0645. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The primary wreckage was at 33 degrees 47.453 minutes north latitude and 112 degrees 28.997 minutes west longitude.
The airplane collided with terrain in a spin following an in-flight loss of control. The multiengine instructional flight departed to the west practice area. Radar data indicated that the crew climbed to 6,000 feet, but didn't maintain that altitude. The altitude varied (climbing and descending) about 500 feet for the next several minutes. About 20 miles west-northwest of the airport, they began a figure-eight type of track, and then went into a descending 360-degree turn before the last radar contact. The last radar return was just abeam the main wreckage area at a mode C transponder reported altitude of 3,900 feet. A witness saw the airplane spinning as it headed toward the ground in a nose low attitude. The preceding target was 18 seconds earlier at a mode C altitude of 5,200 feet. Investigators established control continuity, and noted no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the airframe or either engine.
Probable Cause: The flight instructor's failure to maintain sufficient airspeed to avoid a stall/spin while maneuvering the airplane with a dual student.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20040522X00631&key=1
Location
Images:
Photos: NTSB
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 28-Oct-2008 00:45 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 07-Dec-2017 18:02 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Source, Narrative] |
| 17-Nov-2022 15:45 | Ron Averes | Updated [Aircraft type, Departure airport] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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