# Accident 20250720014799A: Piper PA46-500TP, Lititz, PA, July 20, 2025 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: July 20, 2025, 07:59 local time - Place: Lititz, PA - Airport: Lancaster - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 40.1284° N, 76.2775° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.1284&lon=-76.2775&mi=10 - Aircraft: N819MA, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N819MA) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Piper PA46-500TP (registry code 7104622, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa46-500tp) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-42A (registry code 52268, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-canada-pt6a-42a) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: PIPER PA46-500TP - Reported engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-42A - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - Other injuries: 0 - Pilot certificates: Private pilot - Pilot flight hours: 2,559 total, 34 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA25FA272](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA25FA272) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20250720014799A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ON JULY 20, 2025, AT 0759 EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME (EDT), A PIPER MERIDIAN WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED WHEN IT WAS INVOLVED IN AN OFF-AIRPORT ACCIDENT IN LITITZ, PA. THE PILOT IN COMMAND (PIC) WAS THE SOLE OCCUPANT AND WAS FATALLY INJURED. THE AIRPLANE WAS OPERATED IN ACCORDANCE WITH TITLE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (CFR) PART 91 AS A PERSONAL FLIGHT UNDER INSTRUMENT FLIGHT RULES (IFR). THE LNS METEOROLOGICAL AERODROME REPORT (METAR) PUBLISHED AT 0755 EDT INDICATED THAT INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC) WERE PRESENT AT THE TIME OF DEPARTURE AND INCLUDED WIND FROM 180° AT 2 KNOTS, 5 STATUTE MILES VISIBILITY WITH MIST, BROKEN CLOUDS AT 400 FT AND 900 FT ABOVE GROUND LEVEL (AGL), TEMPERATURE 25 DEGREES C, DEW POINT 24 DEGREES C, AND AN ALTIMETER SETTING OF 29.88 INHG. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT LANCASTER AIRPORT (LNS) WITH STATE COLLEGE REGIONAL AIRPORT (UNV) AS THE INTENDED DESTINATION. LNS VIDEO SURVEILLANCE SHOWED THE PIC ARRIVING AT THE AIRPORT AT APPROXIMATELY 0737 EDT WHERE HE THEN COMPLETED A BRIEF 2-MINUTE PREFLIGHT INSPECTION. AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL (ATC) DATA SHOWED THE PIC CALLED AT 0751 EDT TO REQUEST IFR CLEARANCE TO UNV AIRPORT. ATC PROVIDED IFR CLEARANCE AS REQUESTED AND INSTRUCTED THE PIC TO TAXI TO RUNWAY 8 AND HOLD FOR IFR RELEASE. AUTOMATIC DEPENDENT SURVEILLANCE BROADCAST (ADS-B) DATA SHOWED THE PIC TAXI ONTO RUNWAY 8 AND BEGIN HIS TAKEOFF ROLL AT 0758 EDT. THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED RUNWAY 8, REACHING A PEAK SPEED AND ALTITUDE OF 136 KNOTS AND 650 FT MEAN SEA LEVEL (MSL). THE LAST ADS-B DATAPOINT OCCURRED 2 SECONDS LATER SHOWING A SPEED OF 134 KNOTS AND AN ALTITUDE OF 550 FT MSL. APPROXIMATELY 30 SECONDS AFTER TAKEOFF THE AIRCRAFT DISAPPEARS FROM THE LNS SURVEILLANCE CAMERA VIEW INTO, OR BEHIND, A LOW AREA OF FOG/THIN CLOUDS. APPROXIMATELY 60 SECONDS AFTER TAKEOFF, A PLUME OF WHITE/GREY SMOKE IS VISIBLE FROM THE AIRCRAFT IMPACT SITE. THE TIME OF IMPACT IS ESTIMATED AT 0759 EDT. THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED THE GROUND ON A HEADING OF 070 DEGREES AND A NOSE DOWN ANGLE OF APPROXIMATELY 39 DEGREES. THE ENGINE AND PROPELLER CREATED AN IMPACT CRATER 11 FT LONG, 6 FT WIDE, 20 INCHES DEEP. THE AIRCRAFT BOUNCED AND SLID TO REST 164 FT BEYOND THE POINT OF IMPACT. THE AIRFRAME WAS COMPRESSED FROM NOSE TO TAIL WITH THE LEFT WING SEPARATED INTO MULTIPLE SECTIONS. THE ENGINE REMAINED WITHIN THE FUSELAGE WHILE THE PROPELLER SEPARATED FROM THE ENGINE. THE PROPELLER WAS FOUND 60 FT FROM THE IMPACT CRATER. A REVIEW OF THE PIC'S LOGBOOK INDICATED A FLIGHT REVIEW AND INSTRUMENT PROFICIENCY CHECK WERE BOTH COMPLETED ON DECEMBER 7, 2024, BUT DOES NOT INDICATE COMPLIANCE WITH 14 CFR 61.57(C)(1) INSTRUMENT EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS. ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^PILOT’S SPOUSE^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ## 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 ERA25FA272](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA25FA272), Jul 20, 2025: Piper PA46-500TP (N819MA), Lititz, PA, substantial damage, 1 fatal, investigation ongoing 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.