19960620014559A

Crashed on takeoff in the front yard of a house, burned. (.4)during initial takeoff climb the copilot who was manipulating the controls called for meto (maximum except takeoff) power. After the pilot-in-command set meto power, the left engine lost power. The PIC took the controls from the copilot and called for him to feather the left propeller. The copilot did not hear the call to feather the left propeller. Maintaining an indicated airspeed of 90 knots and wings level attitude, the airplane descended into trees and impacted a rural residential paved street. The cockpit area and main fuselage were consumed by a post crash fire. Examination of the throttle quadrant revealed the propeller control levers were forward, the mixture control levers were autorich, the throttle for the right engine was forward, and the throttle for the left engine was at idle. According to a FAA operations inspector maintaining 90 knots with the propeller not feathered would result in the aircraft descending. The pilot and copilot had not completed a proficiency check or flight check for the DC3 type aircraft within the previous 24 months. Examination of the left engine did not dis close any preexisting anomalies. (-23) weather was VMC for this CFR 91 only instructional flight. As the aircraft began climbing out of Montgomery County Airport (cxo) the left engine failed causing the aircraft to yaw left. The pilot flying applied full right rudder and but could not maintain directional control. The pilot in the left seat (instructor) took the aircraft and rolled the wings level while lowering the nose and began engine failure checklist but was unable to complete it prior to impact. The aircraft struck the trees 3960 feet from the departure end of rwy 14, continued 337 feet impacting the ground in an upright position. Aircraft was engulfed in flames immediately after impact. The two pilots and one passenger exited the flaming wreckage through a rear right fuselage door. Injuries were minor to all 3.