# Accident 20000712010029A: Piper PA23160, Rio Grande City, TX, July 12, 2000 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: July 12, 2000, 13:30 local time - Place: Rio Grande City, TX - Airport: Starr County Airport - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Forced/Precautionary Landing - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 26.5493° N, 98.7205° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=26.5493&lon=-98.7205&mi=10 - Aircraft: N4322P, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N4322P-2017-05-22) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Piper PA-23-160 (registry code 7102304, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-23-160) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: PIPER PA23160 - Reported engine: LYC O320B3B - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 286 total - NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW00LA205](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW00LA205) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000712010029A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) ON TAKE-OFF, BOTH ENGINES LOST POWER. AIRCRAFT IMPACTED TERRAIN CAUSING MAJOR DAMAGE TO AIRCRAFT. NO NMAC, NO FIRE. (.4)ON JULY 12, 2000, APPROXIMATELY 1330 CENTRAL DAYLIGHT TIME, A PIPER PA-23-160 TWIN-ENGINE AIRPLANE, N4322P, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED DURING A FORCED LANDING FOLLOWING A LOSS OF ENGINE POWER DURING TAKEOFF CLIMB FROM THE STARR COUNTY AIRPORT NEAR RIO GRANDE CITY, TEXAS. THE AIRPLANE WAS OWNED AND OPERATED BY A PRIVATE INDIVIDUAL. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT AND HIS PILOT-RATED PASSENGER WERE NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED, AND A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED FOR THE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PART 91 POSITIONING FLIGHT. THE FLIGHT WAS ORIGINATING AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT AND WAS DESTINED FOR THE DAVID WAYNE HOOKS AIRPORT, SPRING, TEXAS. THE FLIGHT HAD DEPARTED CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS, ON THE DAY PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT AND WAS EN ROUTE TO MCALLEN, TEXAS, WHEN THE AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED A TOTAL ELECTRICAL FAILURE. THE PILOT MADE A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING AT THE STARR COUNTY AIRPORT, WHERE HE HAD THE BATTERY CHARGED. HOWEVER, THE ELECTRICAL PROBLEM WAS NOT REPAIRED PRIOR TO DEPARTING ON THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT. ACCORDIN G TO THE PILOT, PRIOR TO DEPARTURE, HE PERFORMED A "THROUGH PREFLIGHT AND RUN-UP CHECK." AFTER LIFT-OFF FROM RUNWAY 15, THE LANDING GEAR WAS RETRACTED, AND A LEFT TURN WAS INITIATED. WHILE IN THE TURN, ABOUT 300-400 FEET AGL, THE LEFT ENGINE BEGAN "SPUTTERING," AND AFTER A "FEW SECONDS" THE ENGINE LOST POWER. THE RIGHT ENGINE THEN BEGAN TO "SPUTTER." SUBSEQUENTLY, THE RIGHT ENGINE LOST POWER. THE PILOT EXECUTED A FORCED LANDING TO A FIELD WITH BRUSH AND MESQUITE TREES. THE AIRPLANE CAME TO REST ONE MILE NORTH OF THE STARR COUNTY AIRPORT. AN FAA INSPECTOR, WHO RESPONDED TO THE ACCIDENT SITE, REPORTED THAT THE FUSELAGE WAS "PARTIALLY SEPARATED AFT OF THE CABIN." ADDITIONALLY, BOTH WINGS WERE STRUCTURALLY DAMAGED. THE REASON FOR THE LOSS OF ENGINE POWER COULD NOT BE DETERMINED. ACCORDING TO THE FAA INSPECTOR, THE AIRPLANE HAD BEEN INSPECTED ON JULY 6, 2000, BY ANOTHER FAA INSPECTOR, WHO ISSUED AN AIRCRAFT CONDITION NOTICE FOR MAINTENANCE DEFECTS, WHICH WERE CONSIDERED TO BE AN IMMINENT HAZARD TO SAFETY. A SPECIAL FLIGHT PERMIT WAS REQUIRED PRIOR TO OPERATING THE AIRCRAFT IF CORRECTIVE ACTION HAD NOT BEEN TAKEN. AN EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE REVEALED THAT THE MAINTENANCE DEFECTS WERE NOT CORRECTED, AND A SPECIAL FLIGHT PERMIT HAD NOT BEEN OBTAINED. NEITHER THE PILOT NOR THE OPERATOR RESPONDED TO REQUESTS TO PROVIDE A COMPLETED PILOT/OPERATOR AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT REPORT (NTSB FORM 6120.1/2). ## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB FTW00LA205](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW00LA205), Jul 12, 2000: Piper PA-23-160 (N4322P), Rio Grande City, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: the loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. Contributing factors were the pilot flying the airplane with known deficiencies, and the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing. ## Other reports on N4322P (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 19970118007059I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970118007059I), Jan 18, 1997: Piper PA23160 (N4322P), Staunton-Waynes, VA, Minor damage. Narrative: on January 18, 1997, at 13:00 local time, a Piper PA-23, N4322P, landed at Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport, Staunton, Virginia. The pilot allowed… From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.