Nipomo, CA, USA
N9YB
Piper PA-30
The multiengine airplane descended in a nose down attitude while spinning and collided with flat level terrain. The accident occurred just after sunset during civil twilight in good visual meteorological conditions. Both occupants were pilots and were ejected during the impact sequence and seating positions could not be determined. A ground witness at the airport reported that he knew the owner and could recognize him on sight; as the airplane traveled by his location he noted that the owner was seated in the right seat. Based on the available information, investigators could not ascertain who was the flying pilot at the time of the accident. No flight plan had been filed, and family and friends of both pilots were not aware that the men had intended to fly that day, nor what the purpose of any flight would have been. The airplane owner held an airline transport pilot certificate with a multiengine rating and certified flight instructor certificate with a single engine rating. The passenger held a private pilot certificate with a single engine land rating. Airborne witnesses observed the accident airplane in turning maneuvers, but noted no apparent problems with the airplane. They did not see the accident occur; however, when they looked back towards the area where the accident airplane had been maneuvering, they observed the flashing lights of fire trucks on the ground. A ground witness reported that he saw an airplane spinning in a nose down attitude out of the corner of his eye. When he looked at the airplane, it made two more tight turns and then dropped out of his line of sight. The next thing he saw was a dust cloud. Both engines were buried into the ground at a 70-degree angle to the horizontal and the fuselage was torsionally twisted to the left over it's entire length. The airframe and engines were inspected with no mechanical anomalies noted that would have precluded normal operation.
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On February 21, 2003, at 1757 Pacific standard time, a Piper PA-30, N9YB, descended to ground impact in a nose down attitude on level terrain near Nipomo, California. The airline transport pilot (ATP)/owner operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The ATP pilot, and a passenger, who held a private pilot certificate, were fatally injured. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local area early evening flight that departed the Santa Maria Airport (SMX), Santa Maria, California, about 1740. No flight plan had been filed. The wreckage was at 32 degrees 59.515 minutes north latitude and 120 degrees 34.171 minutes west longitude. According to tower personnel at SMX, other than the initial call for takeoff at 1710, they were not in communication with the accident airplane. At 1810, a California Highway Patrol (CHP 70) helicopter notified the controller of a downed airplane 7.8 miles northwest of the airport. About 10 minutes later, CHP 70 confirmed the downed airplane was N9YB. Recorded weather for SMX at 1751 reported winds from 330 degrees at 6 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; a scattered cloud layer at 20,000 feet; temperature 56 degrees Fahrenheit; dew point 48 degrees Fahrenheit; altimeter setting 30.05 inches of Mercury. According to sun/moon data obtained from the United States Naval Observatory, the sun had set at 1750 the day of the accident, and the end of civil twilight occurred at 1816. WITNESS STATEMENTS A ground witness, working an adjacent field about 1/8th mile away, stated that he saw an airplane in a spinning descent out of the corner of his eye. When he looked at the airplane, he saw it make two more tight turns in a nose down attitude, and then dropped out of his line of sight. He then saw a cloud of dust. From his location, the witness estimated the airplane's altitude to be between 100 to 200 feet above ground level when he first noticed it. The witness was not able to tell in which direction the airplane was spinning, nor did he recall seeing any lights on the airplane. A certified flight instructor (CFI) and student were on a training flight during this period and observed the accident airplane flying in the area of SMX. The CFI indicated that they were unable to make radio calls on either the Lompoc or Oceano frequencies, so they had switched to the SMX frequency. At no time while they were on the SMX frequency did they hear any radio calls from the accident airplane. The CFI and student had just completed a maneuver and were on a climb-out with a turn towards the north-northeast. She noted their altitude as below 2,000 feet when they observed an object on their horizon with no apparent movement. Even though the airplane was far enough away from their current location, they decided to turn away from it, but remained cognizant of its location. As they set up for their next maneuver, they looked down and noted that the object that they had observed was an airplane. The airplane was near the refinery and made three turns: a southbound turn towards the city of Guadalupe; an eastbound turn towards Nipomo; and a northbound turn back towards the refinery. The student reported that he thought the other airplane was "really low" when it made a turn, and all of the position lights were on. After clearing the area to set up for another maneuver he saw a fire truck and commented to his CFI that he thought the airplane had crashed. PERSONNEL INFORMATION Both occupants were ejected from the aircraft on impact and seating positions could not be determined. A ground witness at the airport reported that he was familiar with the owner of the accident airplane and could recognize him on sight. To the best of this witness's recollection, the owner was not in the right seat as the airplane went past him. According to the spouse of the passenger, he departed about 1700 for the airport with the intent to work in his hangar before coming home for dinner. She also stated that her husband did not call her from the airport to tell her that he was going to go flying. The spouse stated that her husband and the owner of the airplane were flying acquaintances but did not spend a lot of time together outside of flying. Pilot/Owner A review of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airman records revealed the owner held an airline transport pilot certificate with an airplane multiengine land rating, as well as, commercial pilot privileges for airplane single engine land and single engine sea. The owner also held a CFI certificate with an airplane single engine land rating. In addition, he held a basic ground instructor certificate, and a flight engineer certificate. The owner held a first-class medical certificate that was issued on August 8, 2002. It had the limitation that the owner must wear corrective lenses. A personal logbook was located in the owner's hangar that was dated from January 4, 2002, through December 31, 2002. The Safety Board IIC estimated the total flight time recorded in that logbook as 2,104.1 hours. A personal logbook was not located. Federal Express employed him as a pilot; according to their records, the pilot had a total flight time of 8,057.52 hours. Pilot/Passenger According to the FAA airman records, the passenger held a commercial pilot certificate with an airplane single engine land and instrument airplane ratings. The passenger did not hold a multiengine rating. The passenger held a third-class medical certificate that was issued on May 3, 2002, with no limitations or waivers. According to the FAA medical records, the pilot reported 1,170.0 total flight hours on his last medical application. No personal flight records were located for the passenger. AIRCRAFT INFORMATION The airplane was a 1964 Piper PA-30, serial number 30-597. A review of the airplane's logbooks revealed a total airframe time of 4,079.2 hours at the last annual inspection completed on November 6, 2002. The airplane was equipped with a Textron Lycoming IO-320-B1A engine, serial number L-1337-55A, installed on the left side, and a Textron Lycoming IO-320-B1A engine, serial number L-1322-55A, installed on the right side. Both engines had a total time of 4,079.2 hours, with 1,251.1 hours since a field major overhaul. Logbook entries for both engines indicated that the engines were overhauled on July 18, 1985. A Hartzell propeller hub model HC-E2YL-2BSF, serial number BG2911 was installed on the left engine. A Hartzell propeller hub model HC-E2YL-2BSF, serial number BG2757 was installed on the right engine. The propeller logbook entries for both propellers reported a total propeller time of 4,170.2 hours, with 370.2 hours since a field major overhaul. Fueling records from Aviation Unlimited at SMX established that the airplane was last fueled on February 15, 2003, with the addition of 62.27 gallons of 100 low lead octane aviation fuel. WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION Investigators from the Safety Board, the FAA, Piper Aircraft, Inc., and Textron Lycoming examined the wreckage at the accident scene on February 22 and 23, 2003. The accident site was located approximately 8 miles from SMX on the extended centerline of runway 30. The airplane came to rest on a 040-degree magnetic heading in a flat open agricultural field (cabbage field) at the intersection of Division Road and Highway 1. The first identified point of contact (IPC) was the engines, which were buried in the ground. Investigators noted that both of the engines were equidistant from each other in their relative normal position when attached to their respective wings. The cockpit instruments were adjacent to the right engine. The fuselage of the airplane came to rest about 15 feet from the IPC. The left wing remained partially attached, and the right wing separated at the outboard section between the flap and aileron; however, it was located within the main wreckage. The tail section with all flight control surfaces, which remained attached to the airplane structure. According to the responding detective from the San Luis County Sheriff's Department, the pilot/owner was underneath the wing on the north side of the airplane. The passenger was located about 5 feet south of the pilot/owner. Investigators noted that the fuselage of the airplane showed torsional twisting to the left throughout the length of the airplane from the nose to the tail. The airframe manufacturer's representative noted that the forward cockpit flight controls were mostly destroyed with the aileron cables remaining attached through their chains and the interconnect cables. The horizontal stabilizer cables were cut at both control columns and the center fuselage pulley cluster were stretched. The rudder pedal assembly separated at the fuselage; the left rudder cable remained attached at the tube assembly, and the right rudder cable separated from the torque tube at the turnbuckle end. All four fuel tanks had been breached. The fuel valves were found beyond the OFF position, and no contamination of the fuel inlet screens was observed. The rear bench seat remained inside the cockpit, but was not attached to the floor. The front seats were outside of the cockpit and did not remain attached to the floor. The airframe manufacturer stated that shoulder harnesses were not installed on the accident airplane. The landing gear was in the retracted position. The stabilator trim showed two threads, which the airframe manufacturer reported indicated a slight nose down attitude. All of the airplane instruments and radios were destroyed. The balance weights for the rudder and ailerons were situated in their normal locations. The throttle quadrant had separated from the cables and was located outside of the cockpit. A backhoe was utilized to recover both of the engines from the ground. Investigators noted that the engines impacted the ground in a nose down attitude and were buried deeply into the soil; an angle of about 70 degrees was measured between the longitudinal axis of the engines and a level plane to the horizon. The left engine had been completely buried about 5 feet in the ground. The propeller assembly remained attached to the engine. The propeller blades were torsionally twisted along the length of the blades, and were loose in the hub. The right engine was mostly buried about 4 feet in the ground with the tip of one propeller blade exposed above the ground. MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION Neither occupant remained secured to their seat or within the airplane structure upon impact. Both pilots were located on the left side of the airplane. The owner was towards the aft of the airplane, and the passenger was located towards the forward portion of the airplane. Pilot/Owner The San Luis Obispo County Coroner conducted an autopsy on the owner on February 24, 2003. The cause of death was determined as multiple blunt force trauma. The FAA Toxicology and Accident Research Laboratory, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, performed a toxicological analysis from samples obtained during the autopsy. The results of the analysis of the specimens were negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, volatiles, and tested drugs. Pilot/Passenger The San Luis Obispo County Coroner conducted an autopsy on the passenger on February 24, 2003. The cause of death was determined as multiple blunt force trauma. The FAA Toxicology and Accident Research Laboratory, Oklahoma City, performed a toxicological analysis from samples obtained during the autopsy. The results of the analysis of the specimens were negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, volatiles, and tested drugs. TESTS AND RESEARCH The airplane was recovered by Aircraft Recovery Service, Littlerock, California, on February 23, 2003, and moved to the owner's hangar at SMX for the airplane and engine inspections. There were no mechanical anomalies noted with airframe inspection. Teardowns were conducted on both engines. Investigators found no mechanical discrepancies with either engine. Left Engine The number 2 injector line separated and the number 2 nozzle had broken in two pieces. As the engine manufacturer's representative removed the number 3 fuel injector line from the nozzle, fuel flowed from the line. The number 1 nozzle had fuel in it, and the numbers 1, 3, and 4 nozzles were clear and open with no debris observed. The fuel pump was destroyed. Fuel was found in the fuel flow divider and the servo inlet screen was lubricated with fuel and clean of debris. The governor had separated from its mounting pad. The magnetos remained attached at their respective mounting pads. When manually rotated each terminal produced spark. All of the spark plugs were a light gray color, with no anomalies noted. The ignition harness was destroyed. The engine was manually rotated and thumb compression was obtained in each cylinder. Right Engine The governor separated from its mounting pad; however, the drive shaft was intact, and the governor could be rotated without any binding. The number 2 fuel nozzle had broken. The numbers 1, 3, and 4 fuel nozzles were intact and clear and open with no debris observed. Fuel was observed in the fuel flow divider. Fuel was also found in the servo and lines to the servo and fuel flow divider. The inlet screen was free of debris. Both magnetos remained attached to their respective mounting pads. The magnetos were removed, and manually rotated with spark observed at all terminals. All of the spark plugs were a light gray color, with no anomalies noted. The ignition harness was destroyed. The engine was manually rotated and thumb compression was obtained in each cylinder. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION The IIC released the wreckage to the owner's representative on February 25, 2003. According to the FAA Airway Facilities division, radar coverage in and around SMX for a radius of 8 nautical miles was 2,000 feet and above. The Paso Robles, California, radar site provided the primary source of radar information for the SMX area.
the flying pilot's failure to maintain an adequate airspeed that resulted in a stall/spin.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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