14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, July 02, 2014 in Harrison, AR
Probable Cause Approval Date: 11/17/2014
Aircraft: PIPER PA30, registration: N7762Y
Injuries: 1 Serious.
NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
An airport security camera captured the pilot getting into the airplane, starting the engines, and taxiing for takeoff. No preflight inspection was recorded. About 2 minutes later, the camera and witnesses saw the airplane take off and immediately enter a gradual left turn about 400 feet above the ground. The bank angle increased to about 90 degrees before the airplane’s right wing dropped, and the airplane disappeared from view. Examination of the left engine revealed water in the fuel flow divider, fuel injectors, engine-driven fuel pump, and selector valve fuel bowl. A sample taken from the fuel truck was tested and contained no water or contaminants. It is likely that, due to water in the fuel, the left engine lost power, which resulted in the airplane turning to the left. The pilot did not quickly and appropriately configure the airplane for one-engine flight, which resulted in a loss of control.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The pilot's loss of control of the airplane during initial climb because he failed to correctly compensate for the loss of power in the left engine. Contributing to the accident was water contamination in the fuel and the lack of an adequate preflight inspection by the pilot.
HISTORY OF FLIGHT
On July 2, 2014, about 0810 central daylight time, a Piper PA-30 airplane, N7762Y, impacted terrain shortly after takeoff from the Boone County Airport (KHRO), Harrison, Arkansas. The pilot, the sole occupant on board, was seriously injured. The airplane was destroyed. The airplane was being operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed. The flight was originating at the time of the accident, and was en route to an unknown refueling stop. Its final destination was Salem, Oregon.
An airport security camera captured the pilot getting in the airplane, starting the engines, and taxiing away for takeoff. No preflight inspection was recorded. About two minutes later, the airplane took off. The accident was not captured. According to witnesses, however, the airplane lifted off runway 36 before reaching the 1,000-foot runway marker. It immediately entered a gradual left turn at about 400 feet. The bank angle increased to about 90° before the airplane dropped off on its right wing and disappeared from view. The point of impact was about 1,100 feet west of the runway.
PERSONNEL (CREW) INFORMATION
According to FAA documents, the pilot, age 66, held an Airline Transport Pilot certificate with an Airplane Multiengine Land rating, and Commercial privileges with Airplane Single-Engine Land and Sea ratings. He also held a Flight Instructor certificate with an Airplane Single-Engine rating. His Second Class Airman Medical certificate, dated June 25, 2014, contained the restriction, "Must wear corrective lenses for near and distant vision." When the pilot applied for this medical certification, he estimated his total flight time to be 11,500 hours. His logbook was never located. The pilot also held a Mechanic certificate with Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) ratings. He did not hold an Inspector Authorization (IA). There were no documents to indicate that he was current as either a pilot or as a mechanic.
AIRCRAFT INFORMATION
N7762Y (serial number 30-849), a model PA-30, was manufactured by the Piper Aircraft Corporation in 1965. It was powered by two Lycoming IO-320-B1A engines (serial number L-1833-55A, left; L-1826-55A, right), each rated at 160 horsepower, driving two Hartzell 2-blade, all-metal, constant speed, full-feathering propellers (model number HC-E2YL-2).
According to a single maintenance page found in the wreckage, both engines received 100-hour inspections on July 1, 2014, at 3,328.11 and 3328.42 total operating hours, respectively, and had accrued 1,314 hours since major overhaul. On the same date, the airframe received an annual inspection at a tachometer time of 3,328.11 hours.
METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION
The following METAR (Meteorological Terminal Aviation Routine Weather Report or Meteorological Aerodrome Report) was obtained from the KHRO Automated Surface Observing Systems (ASOS) at 0753:
Wind, 320 degrees at 6 knots; visibility, 10 statute miles; sky condition, clear; temperature 21 degrees Celsius (C.); dew point, 18 degrees C.; altimeter setting, 30.06 inches of mercury.
AERODROME INFORMATION
Boone County Airport (KHMO) is located 3 miles northwest of Harrison, Arkansas, at coordinates 36°15'41" North latitude, and 093°09'17" West longitude. It is situated at an elevation of 1,365 feet msl. It is equipped with one runway: 18-36, 6,161 feet x 150 feet, asphalt.
WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION
The wreckage was located about 1,100 feet west of the airport, near the edge of the perimeter fence, at geographical coordinates 36°15'37.95 North latitude, and 93°9'25.67 West longitude. There was a 20-foot ground scar that extended to the right wing. At the beginning of this ground scar was the separated right wing tip. The fuselage was split into two sections: the forward section was aligned on a magnetic heading of 320 degrees, and aft section was aligned on a magnetic heading of 020 degrees. The cabin roof had been peeled back by first responders to extricate the pilot. The left horizontal stabilizer and elevator were bent up. The right wing was severed about midpoint.
Both propellers remained attached to their engines. Blade A (descending) of the left propeller was bent aft about 30 degrees, and blade B (ascending) was straight, consistent with little or no rotation at impact. Blade A (descending) of the right propeller was twisted and bent aft about 80 degrees, and blade B (ascending) was twisted and bent forward. Both blades bore 90 degree striations on the cambered surfaces, consistent with high rpm at impact. Both spinners were unremarkable.
Examination of the cockpit revealed the throttles, propeller and mixture controls were full forward, consistent with a takeoff setting. The landing gear control was in the DOWN position. The left fuel selector was on the left main fuel tank, and the right fuel selector was between the right main and right auxiliary fuel tanks. Both boost pumps were OFF. The flap jackscrew exposed 22 threads. According to the Piper Aircraft Corporations, this would equate to 16° flaps down, sometimes used as a takeoff setting, particularly for short or soft fields.
MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION
According to the pilot's son, his father had sustained a severe head injury and numerous fractures and internal organ damage.
TESTS AND RESEARCH
After the on-scene examination was completed, the airplane was transported to a nearby hangar where both engines were disassembled and examined. No anomalies were found with the right engine. Examination of the left engine, however, disclosed water in the fuel flow divider, fuel injectors, engine-driven fuel pump, and selector valve fuel bowl. A fuel sample taken from the servicing fuel truck was tested and contained no water or contaminants.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
According to FAA records, the airplane was first registered to the pilot in April 1992. At some later time, the airplane was seized by the federal government. FAA sent the pilot two letters, the first dated November 1, 2011, and the second dated February 2, 2012, requiring that the airplane be re-registered in accordance with 14 CFR Part 14. This was never done and no reply was received. On March 1, 2011, the airplane was purchased by another individual at a seized property auction. No logbooks accompanied the purchase. On July 8, 2011, application for registering the airplane as N7762Y, LLC was made. The airplane was kept in the new owner's hangar at his airstrip. The new owner stated he never flew the airplane. On June 1, 2014, after buying back the airplane, the accident pilot submitted an application for registration under his name.
On July 1, 2014, the pilot flew the airplane to KHRO. He enlisted the services of a local pilot, regarded as an expert on the Piper PA-30 Twin Comanche, to fly with him. This pilot said the accident pilot flew the airplane well. He cautioned him to sump his fuel tanks and to open the fuel drains before each and every flight because the fuel caps were susceptible to allowing water to get into the fuel tanks.
In the wreckage, a paper copy of a Special Airworthiness Certificate was recovered. According to FAA inspectors, the Special Airworthiness Certificate was issued by an FAA office (OKA-MIDO-40) that didn't exist, and was sign by an FAA inspector (Marvin Berly) who didn't exist.
The maintenance logbooks were not in the airplane. However, a single piece of paper bearing entries for 100-hour engine inspections and an airframe annual inspection was recovered from the wreckage. The inspections were dated July 1, 2014, and both signed by the pilot, who was also a licensed A&P mechanic. According to the FAA inspectors, an airframe annual inspection can only be signed off by an IA.
The fixed base operator said the airplane had been parked on his ramp and neither he nor his employees observe the pilot working on the airplane. Additionally, the security camera did not capture such activity.
The wreckage was released to the Boone County Airport manager on July 4, 2014.
http://registry.faa.gov/N7762Y
NTSB Identification: CEN14FA337
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, July 02, 2014 in Harrison, AR
Aircraft: PIPER PA30, registration: N7762Y
Injuries: 1 Serious.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
On July 2, 2014, about 0810 central daylight time, a Piper PA-30, N7761Y, impacted terrain shortly after takeoff from the Boone County Airport (KHRO), Harrison, Arkansas. The pilot, the sole occupant on board, was seriously injured. The airplane was destroyed. The airplane was owned and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.
According to witnesses, the airplane lifted off runway 36 before the 1,000-foot runway marker and entered a gradual left turn. The bank angle increased to 90-degrees before the airplane dropped off on its right wing and impact the ground. The point of impact was about 1,100 feet west of the runway.
Flight Standards District Office: FAA Little Rock FSDO-11
George Atiyeh
(Photo courtesy of Hillary Atiyeh)
George Atiyeh, 66, the founder of Friends of Opal Creek who rose to national prominence during the high-profile fight to protect old-growth forest in the Santiam Canyon, was airlifted to a hospital in Springfield, Missouri, where he is listed in serious condition.
Atiyeh, the nephew of former Oregon Gov. Vic Atiyeh, crashed his 1964 Piper Comanche shortly after takeoff into a field on airport property, according to the Boone County Sheriff's Office.
He has broken ribs, a punctured lungs, facial fractures, bleeding in his brain and is paralyzed on his right side, said Michael Donnelly, a longtime friend who is in contact with Atiyeh's wife, Hillary. Atiyeh is heavily sedated.
"George is a tough guy and a survivor," Donnelly said. "This is a shock to all of us. The number of people calling to ask about him has been pouring in."
Atiyeh, who was featured in the book "Showdown at Opal Creek," spearheaded a nearly 20 year battle to protect the area from logging and mining. He spent his childhood at Jawbone Flats, a mining camp, and although he started out as a logger he became an environmental activist when plans to log his childhood home were revealed.
The fight to save Opal Creek became one of the last battles in the so-called "Forest Wars" between environmentalists and logging companies.
The law creating the 20,266-acre Opal Creek Wilderness and 13,000 acre Opal Creek Scenic Area was signed into law Sept. 30, 1996.
"If it hadn't been for George, Opal Creek would have been logged long ago," Donnelly said. "He was a champion for ancient forest."
Part of Atiyeh's strategy for bringing awareness to the area involved airplanes. As a pilot, he would bring the news media and politicians up to give tours of what he considered irresponsible clear-cut logging in and around Willamette National Forest.
"It was highly effective," Donnelly said. "He had a little airstrip in Lyons and he would bring them up and show them forest that had been just completely devastated. Then he would fly toward Mount Jefferson and come just over Whetstone Mountain into the Opal Creek Basin – this pristine, virgin forest. He had it down, and it really made an impression."
Atiyeh was the only person on board the plane at the time of the crash. Authorities say the National Transportation and Safety Board will investigate the cause of the crash.
Story and Photos: http://www.statesmanjournal.com
HARRISON, AR - An Oregon man is hospitalized in serious condition after the crash of a small plane at the Boone County Regional Airport.
It happened shortly before 9 Wednesday morning.
The Boone County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) says the 1964 Piper Twin Comanche went down just after the pilot left runway 36 headed north and ended up just west of the runway on airport property.
Pilot George Atiyeh, 66, of Lyons, Oregon was airlifted to Mercy Hospital in Springfield, Missouri for significant injuries sustained in the crash. Atiyeh was the only person on board the aircraft. Mercy Hospital listed Atiyeh’s condition as serious.
The NTSB (National Transportation and Safety Board) was contacted and the investigation will be turned over to that agency once its crews arrive on the scene.
Story and Photo Gallery: http://www.fox16.com
Click here for more on the story from the Harrison Daily Times.
HARRISON, Ark. — The Boone County Sheriff's Office says one person was injured after a small plane crashed at the Boone County Regional Airport.
The sheriff's office says the crash happened Wednesday. According to initial findings, the 1964 Piper Twin Comanche crashed shortly after takeoff into a field on airport property.
The sheriff's office says 66-year-old pilot George Atiyeh of Lyons, Oregon, was injured in the crash. He was airlifted to a hospital in Springfield, Missouri, where he is listed in serious condition.
Atiyeh is the nephew of former Oregon Gov. Vic Atiyeh and the founder of Friends of Opal Creek.
The former governor says the family doesn't have much information, except it's very serious and his nephew is heavily sedated.
Atiyeh was the only person on board the plane at the time of the crash. Authorities say the National Transportation and Safety Board will investigate the cause of the crash.
Vic Atiyeh was governor from 1979 until 1987.
Story: http://www.oregonlive.com
The pilot of a small private airplane was airlifted from the Boone County Airport early Wednesday morning following a crash just off the runway just before 8 a.m.
Airport manager Judy McCutcheon said the plane was a Piper Comanche. She said a visitor seeing off a passenger on another plane ran into the airport and said they witnessed the plane roll off the runway on take off and into a wooded area on the west side of the runway.
McCutcheon said she didn’t know who was flying the plane, but the pilot, who was from Oregon, was the only person aboard the aircraft.
She said the plane was enroute to Oregon, but the pilot didn’t file a flight plan. She explained that commercial pilots must file a flight plan, but private pilots aren’t required to if the weather is good.
McCutcheon said the plane had been in a hangar at the airport for about a month and was apparently being flown back to owners in Oregon.
The Boone County Sheriff’s Department and Arkansas State Police were investigating, but National Transportation and Safety Board officials from Little Rock were on the way to the scene.
Harrison firefighters had sprayed the plane and surrounding area with fire retardent foam, some of which was still on the ground.
An Air Evac helicopter lifted off with the pilot on board about 9 a.m., but his condition was unknown at the time. North Arkansas Regional Medical Center emergency crews were also on scene.
Story, photo and comments: http://harrisondaily.com
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