# Accident 20021020028229A: Piper PA60601, Agua Dulce, CA, October 20, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 20, 2002, 13:00 local time
- Place: Agua Dulce, CA
- Airport: Agua Dulce Airpark Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 34.5025° N, 118.3139° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.5025&lon=-118.3139&mi=10
- Aircraft: N700US, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N700US-2004-06-29) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper AEROSTAR 601 (registry code 7106010, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-aerostar-601) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA60601
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 3
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX03FA013](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX03FA013) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20021020028229A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(.19) ON OCTOBER 20, 2002, ABOUT 1300 HOURS PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME, A PIPER AEROSTAR 601, N700US, COLLIDED WITH TERRAIN AFTER DEPARTURE FROM AGUA DULCE, CALIFORNIA. THE AIRPLANE WAS OPERATED BY THE OWNER/PILOT UNDER 14 CFR PART 91. THE PRIVATE RATED PILOT, STUDENT RATED PASSENGER, AND REAR SEATED PASSENGER WERE ALL FATALLY INJURED. THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE PERSONAL FLIGHT, AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE ORIGINATING FLIGHT WAS DESTINED FOR AN UNKNOWN LOCATION. ACCORDING TO WITNESSES, THE AIRPLANE HAD LANDED, POSSIBLY TO PICKUP A PASSENGER, PARKED, AND REMAINED ON THE GROUND FOR A PERIOD OF TIME. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE AIRPLANE WAS SEEN TO TAXI OUT FOR DEPARTURE ON RUNWAY 04. ACCORDING TO A FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION AIRPORT MASTER RECORD FORM 5010, DATED JUNE 20, 1995, RUNWAY 04 IS 4,600 FEET LONG AND HAS A 1.8 PERCENT UPWARD GRADIENT. THE PILOT HELD IN POSITION, POWERED UP THE ENGINES, AND STARTED HIS DEPARTURE. THE AIRPLANE WAS OBSERVED USING MOST OF THE RUNWAY, ROTATE, AND ASSUME A HIGHER THAN NORMAL ATTITUDE. WITNESSES WATCHED THE AIRPLANE TURN LEFT FOLLOWING THE ROUTE OF A CANYON AND RISING TERRAIN, AND DISSAPPEAR FROM VIEW FOLLOWED BY SMOKE AND FIRE. IN THE AREA OF THE CRASH, TWO WITNESSES REPORTED THE AIRPLANE WAS LOW, NOSE HIGH, AND WALLOWING JUST BEFORE IT DESCENDED INTO A DRAINAGE AREA .69 MILES FROM THE RUNWAY. (-23) THE OWNER/OPERATED, 14 CFR PART 91, AIRCRAFT DEPARTED FROM AGUA DULCE, CA ON RUNWAY 04, AT APPROXIMATELY 1300 HOURS PDT UNDER VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDTIONS (VMC). THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED, BY WITNESSES, USING A MAJORITY OF THE RUNWAY TO LOCATE AND ASSUME A SLIGHTLY HIGHER THEN NORMAL ATTITUDE. THE AIRCRAFT BANKED LEFT, FOLLOWING THE ROUTE OF THE CANYON AND RISING TERRAIN, THEN DISAPPEAR FROM SITE FOLLOWED BY SMOKE AND FIRE. WITNESSES AT THE CRASH SITE REPORTED THE AIRCRAFT WAS FLYING LOW WITH A NOSE HIGH ATTITUDE AND WALLOWING BEFORE BANKING RIGHT, DESCENDING INTO A WASH AREA, 7 TENTHS OF A MILE FROM THE END OF THE RUNWAY. THE AIRCRAFT CONTACTED THE GROUND, NOSE AND RIGHT WING FIRST, AND SUBSEQUENTLY CAUGHT FIRE, DESTROYING THE AIRCRAFT. THE PRIVATE RATED PILOT, STUDENT RATED COPILOT AND FEMALE PASSENGER WERE ALL FATALLY INJURED. THE AIRCRAFT LANDING GEAR WAS UP AND STOWED. THE FLAPS WERE FULL UP. THROTTLES AND PROP CONTROLS APPEARED TO BE FULL FORWARD                          .

## 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 LAX03FA013](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX03FA013), Oct 20, 2002: Piper Aerostar 601 (N700US), Agua Dulce, CA, destroyed, 3 fatal. Probable cause: the pilot's failure to attain and maintain a sufficient airspeed, which led to an inadvertent stall mush. The pilot's selection of the wrong runway for departure, considering the uphill gradient, the…

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.

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