# Accident 20130315004179A: Piper PA-31T, Fort Lauderdale, FL, March 15, 2013

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 15, 2013, 16:20 local time
- Place: Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Airport: Fort Lauderdale Executive
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 26.1917° N, 80.1561° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=26.1917&lon=-80.1561&mi=10
- Aircraft: N63CA, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N63CA-2018-03-06) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-31T (registry code 7103124, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-31t) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney PT6A series (registry code 52032, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-pt6a-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-31T
- Reported engine: P&W PT6A SER
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 3
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Airline transport, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 6,762 total, 11 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA13FA168](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA13FA168) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20130315004179A

## Narrative

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

ON MARCH 15, 2013 AT 1620, N63CA, A PIPER PA-31T, CHEYENNE II, REGISTERED TO MAS INC. OPERATING AS A 14 CFR PART 91 AIRCRAFT, COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND 0.5 MILES EAST OF FORT LAUDERDALE EXECUTIVE AIRPORT (FXE) AFTER TAKEOFF. POSTCRASH FIRE CONSUMED THE AIRFRAME, THE AIRLINE TRANSPORT RATED PILOT AND TWO PASSENGERS WERE KILLED. THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED FROM RUNWAY 08, FOR A MAINTENANCE CHECK FLIGHT. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED, WINDS WERE OUT OF THE NE AT 10MPH GUSTING TO 18MPH, VISIBILITY WAS 10 MILES. BASED ON WITNESS STATEMENTS, THE RIGHT ENGINE DEVELOPED A PROBLEM AFTER TAKEOFF. ACCORDING TO ATC PLOTS, THE AIRCRAFT DRIFTED TO THE RIGHT OF CENTERLINE AT MIDFIELD AND CLIMBED TO 300FT MSL, HEADING 094 & 90 KNOTS. THE AIRCRAFT THEN TURNED RIGHT TO A HEADING OF 221 & 91 KNOTS AND HEIGHT OF 200FT MSL. MOMENTS LATER THE AIRCRAFT TURNED RIGHT AGAIN AND ROLLED PAST 90 DEGREES WITH A NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE THEN CONTINUED TO ROLL INVERTED, AND IMPACT THE GROUND AT APPROXIMATELY A NW HEADING. GROUND SCARS INDICATED SIGNS OF AN HIGH ANGLE/LOW SPEED IMPACT.

## 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 ERA13FA168](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA13FA168), Mar 15, 2013: Piper PA-31T (N63CA), Fort Lauderdale, FL, destroyed, 3 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control following an emergency, the nature of which could not be determined because of crash and fire damage, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

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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