N3648E
PIPER PA-46-310P
THE AIRPLANE WAS EN ROUTE AT 14,000 FEET MSL WHEN THE MANIFOLD PRESSURE DROPPED FROM 30 TO 18 INCHES. ELEVEN MINUTES LATER THE OIL LIGHT CAME 'ON'. THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED UNDER PARTIAL POWER AT AN AIRSPEED OF 90 KNOTS, WHILE DESCENDING AT 100 TO 300 FEET PER MINUTE (FPM). BY 9,500 FEET MSL THE ENGINE OIL PRESSURE DROPPED TO ZERO. THE PILOT SHUT DOWN THE ENGINE AND MADE A FORCED LANDING IN THE GULF OF MEXICO NEAR A SHIP. THE AIRPLANE REMAINED AFLOAT FOR 5 TO 7 MINUTES. DURING THIS TIME, THE EMERGENCY EXIT WAS OPENED, ALL OCCUPANTS DONNED A LIFE VEST, EXITED, AND BOARDED THE LIFE RAFT, WHICH THE PILOT HAD DEPLOYED. ALL WERE RESCUED BY PERSONNEL FROM THE SHIP. THE AIRPLANE WAS NOT RECOVERED; THEREFORE, THE CAUSE OF THE POWER LOSS WAS NOT DETERMINED.
On May 7, 1994, at 1806 central daylight time, a Piper PA-46-310P, N3648E, was destroyed during a forced landing in the Gulf of Mexico, approximately one hundred and ten miles offshore from Houston, Texas. The airline transport pilot and one passenger sustained minor injuries. The remaining two passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal cross country flight. During telephone interviews the pilot reported that the airplane was en route at 14,000 feet MSL on an IFR flight plan from Cozumel, Mexico, to Houston, Texas, when the manifold pressure dropped from 30 to 18 inches. Eleven minutes later, the pilot observed the oil light "ON". The airplane continued under partial power, at an airspeed of 90 knots, while descending at a rate of 300 fpm to 100 fpm. By 9,500 feet MSL the engine oil pressure dropped to zero and the propeller was windmilling. The pilot shut down the engine, and executed an emergency ditching near a ship. The pilot further reported that all checklist items except the master switch "OFF" was completed prior to the water ditching. The airplane remained afloat for five to seven minutes. During this time, the emergency exit was opened, all occupants donned life vests, exited, and boarded the life raft. Neither the owner nor pilot responded to numerous request for a completed Pilot/Operator Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2). The airplane was not recovered.
A TOTAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER WITH THE CAUSE UNDETERMINED. A FACTOR WAS THE LACK OF SUITABLE TERRAIN FOR THE FORCED LANDING.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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