Sunday, April 04, 2021

Piper PA-46-600TP, N282ST: Accident occurred December 06, 2020 at Leesburg Executive Airport (KJYO), Loudoun County, Virginia

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.

The National Transportation Safety Board did not travel to the scene of this accident.

Additional Participating Entities:
Federal Aviation Administration / Accident Investigation and Prevention; Washington, District of Columbia
Piper Aircraft; Vero Beach, Florida  

Avenge Holdings LLC 


Location: Leesburg, VA
Incident Number: ERA21LA065
Date & Time: December 6, 2020, 19:10 UTC
Registration: N282ST
Aircraft: Piper PA46 
Injuries: 1 None
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General aviation - Personal

On December 6, 2020, about 1420 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-46-600TP, N282ST, sustained minor damage when it was involved in an incident near Leesburg, Virginia. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

The pilot reported that winds were 340° at 12 kts gusting to 17 kts – “straight down the runway” – when he landed on runway 35 at the Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO), Leesburg, Virginia. He stated that it was a light touchdown and that about 2 to 4 seconds after traveling “straight,” the airplane “went careening to the left.” He stated that the right brake locked, and the right main landing gear (RMLG) tire “blew” from the skidding. The pilot applied “significant” rudder and brake inputs to correct the deviation and was able to straighten the airplane’s path; however, the airplane departed the left side of the runway about 530 ft from the initial landing point and came to rest on a 359° heading about 20 ft from the runway edge.

Examination of the accident site revealed that a skid mark consistent with being made by the RMLG tire began a few feet right of the runway centerline and continued to the point where the airplane departed the runway. A skid mark consistent with being made by the nose landing gear (NLG) tire began just after the start of the skid mark produced by the RMLG tire and ended prior to the point where the airplane departed the runway. A skid mark consistent with being made by the left main gear (LMLG) tire began just before the skid mark produced by the NLG tire ended and continued to the point where the airplane departed the runway.

When the airplane departed the runway, the tire marks in the dirt measured 4 ft from the NLG to the RMLG and 8.8 ft from the LMLG to the NLG. When the airplane was parallel with the runway sign, the tire marks in the grass measured 9 ft from the LMLG to the NLG and 4.5 ft from the RMLG to the NLG.

Examination of the airplane revealed impact damage to the left wingtip just aft of the navigation light and slight buckling of the upper wing skin just inboard of the wingtip and forward of the main wing spar. A post-accident functional test of the landing gear retraction/extension system was performed, and no anomalies were noted. Additionally, a landing gear free fall check was performed, and the nose landing gear came down and locked.

The RMLG tire was deflated and exhibited two flat spots, one that was worn through the tire. The preload bearings and brakes exhibited no anomalies when examined.

The LMLG tire had two flat spots; however, the tire was not worn through. The LMLG tire pressure measured 44.0 psi.

The NLG tire remained inflated and the fork was deformed to the left. The NLG tire pressure measured 33.3 psi. The right side tire wall markings were significantly abraded.

When the left rudder pedal was pressed to the stop, the roller on the steering horn had a 0.015-inch gap, which was within manufacturer specifications. When the right rudder pedal was pressed to the stop, the roller on the steering horn had a 0.01-inch gap, which was within manufacturer specifications. When the nose landing gear steering horn was in a neutral position, a 0.02-inch feeler gauge could be inserted between the left and right rollers and the steering arm.

The rake angle of the nose landing gear was measured to be 90.0°. The trunnion mounted stops were damaged on both sides of the NLG. All three bolts securing the steering horn to the nose landing gear remained attached. The steering horn was retained for further examination.

At 1355, the recorded weather at JYO included wind from 310° magnetic at 11 knots gusting to 19 knots.

In addition to this incident, the NTSB is collecting data from other minor/no damage incidents involving PA-46-600TP airplanes that occurred during landing. All of these events have occurred after December 2019, with the most recent documented incident occurring in January 2021. All airplanes had serial numbers that were 46981XX and greater.

N641WA (serial number 4698141) experienced a loss of directional control and a subsequent runway excursion while landing on runway 35 at Manchester Airport (MHT), Manchester, New Hampshire, on January 19, 2021. The pilot stated that when he selected beta shortly after the NLG touched down, the airplane “jerked right as if he lost traction.” Examination of the runway by MHT airport operations immediately following the incident revealed a dry runway and no snow or ice contamination. Examination of the runway also revealed the presence of skid marks from all three landing gear tires starting about 400 feet beyond the runway threshold that were about 1,200 ft-long. The skid marks veered to the left off the runway and the orientation of the skid marks ended on a heading that was 90° left of the runway orientation as they reached the left runway edge. During a post-incident interview, a mechanic stated that he added air to the NLG tire according to specifications in the Pilot’s Operating Handbook on the day prior to the incident. Three days after the incident, the NLG tire pressure was measured at 78 psi; Eight days after the incident it was measured to be 64 psi. The NLG steering horn was retained for further examination.

N831PS (serial number 4698120) experienced a loss of direction control while landing on runway 33 at Martin State Airport (MTN), Baltimore, Maryland, on December 19, 2020. The pilot stated that when NLG touched down, the airplane veered “hard” to the left; however, with rudder inputs he was able to correct back to near the centerline. He inspected his airplane before returning to his home airport, and measured the NLG tire pressure at 72 psi. Following the incident, the steering horn was examined by the airframe manufacturer, found to be slightly out of tolerance, and was replaced. The pilot experienced no further incidents during subsequent flight.

Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information

Aircraft Make: Piper 
Registration: N282ST
Model/Series: PA46 600TP
Aircraft Category: Airplane
Amateur Built: No
Operator: On file
Operating Certificate(s) Held: None
Operator Designator Code:

Meteorological Information and Flight Plan

Conditions at Accident Site: VMC 
Condition of Light: Day
Observation Facility, Elevation: KJYO,389 ft msl
Observation Time: 13:55 Local
Distance from Accident Site: 0 Nautical Miles 
Temperature/Dew Point: 6°C /-2°C
Lowest Cloud Condition: Clear
Wind Speed/Gusts, Direction: 11 knots / 19 knots, 300°
Lowest Ceiling: None 
Visibility: 10 miles
Altimeter Setting: 29.94 inches Hg 
Type of Flight Plan Filed: IFR
Departure Point: Stuart, FL (KSUA) 
Destination: Leesburg, VA

Wreckage and Impact Information

Crew Injuries: 1 None
Aircraft Damage: Minor
Passenger Injuries: 
Aircraft Fire: None
Ground Injuries: 
Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 1 None 
Latitude, Longitude: 39.077972,-77.5575 (est)

1 comment:

  1. I believe there thell be more to come on the PT46
    with the number of excursions lately.

    ReplyDelete