VALPARAISO, IN, USA
N99GN
PIPER PA 34-200
The pilot receiving instruction and the flight instructor were conducting multiple approaches to the airport. During a simulated engine-out go-around, when the pilot advanced the throttle of the operating engine to full power, he allowed the airspeed to drop below the single-engine minimum controllable airspeed. Subsequently, the pilot lost airplane control, and the airplane descended and impacted terrain. Examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of any preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The instructor should have been monitoring the pilot's airspeed control and his failure to do so contributed to the accident.
On May 8, 2018, about 1315 central daylight time, a Piper PA-34-200 airplane, N99GN, collided with terrain following a go-around at the Porter County Airport (KVPZ), Valparaiso, Indiana. The flight instructor was seriously injured and the pilot receiving instruction had minor injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was registered to and operated by Griffith Aviation, Inc., under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as an instructional flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which operated without a flight plan. The flight departed Griffith-Merrillville Airport (05C), Griffith, Indiana, about 1000.According to information provided by representatives from the Griffith Aviation Inc. flight school, the pilot receiving instruction was performing approaches to KVPZ. The second approach was a simulated engine out approach to a planned go-around. During the go-around, the airplane's speed dropped below the single-engine minimum controlled airspeed as the pilot advanced the throttle of the operating engine to full power. He lost control of the airplane, and the airplane descended and collided with terrain. Representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration examined the wreckage and did not find any preimpact anomalies which would have contributed to the accident. Substantial damage was sustained to the right wing spar and fuselage.
The pilot receiving instruction’s failure to maintain a safe operating airspeed, which resulted in a loss of airplane control. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor's failure to monitor the pilot's airspeed control.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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