# Accident 20030307004889A: Piper PA46500TP, Albuquerque, NM, March 7, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 7, 2003, 19:18 local time
- Place: Albuquerque, NM
- Airport: Double Eagle II Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Final Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.1661° N, 106.7708° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.1661&lon=-106.7708&mi=10
- Aircraft: N522RF, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N522RF-2003-10-11) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA46-500TP (registry code 7104622, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa46-500tp) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-42 (registry code 52062, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-canada-pt6a-42) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA46500TP
- Reported engine: PWA PT6A42
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 3
- Pilot flight hours: 1,440 total, 120 in this make and model, 60 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB DEN03FA045](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN03FA045) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030307004889A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON MARCH 7, 2003, AT 1918 MT, A PIPER PA-46-500TP, N522RF, WAS DESTROYED DURING IMPACT WITH TERRAIN NEAR DOUBLE EAGLE II AIRPORT, ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO. THE INSTRUMENT RATED PRIVATE PILOT AND HIS TWO PASSENGERS WERE FATALLY INJURED. THE PILOT WAS OPERATING THE AIRPLANE UNDER 14 CFR PART 91. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE CROSS COUNTRY, NIGHT FLIGHT THAT ORIGINATED AT 1806 FROM SCOTTSDALE, AZ. THE PILOT HAD JUST CANCELED HIS IFR FLIGHT PLAN AND WAS LANDING VISUALLY AT A NON TOWERED AIRPORT.

## 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 DEN03FA045](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN03FA045), Mar 8, 2003: Piper PA-46-500TP (N522RF), Albuquerque, NM, destroyed, 3 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's unstabilized approach and his failure to maintain obstacle clearance. Contributing factors were the dark night light condition, and the static wires.

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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