DEN99FA123

The pilot was flying parallel to a line of thunderstorms at 18,000 feet. Radar data and weather data indicated that the pilot turned to pass through the wall of cells where satellite infrared data indicated a hole. The pilot was flying a new turbocharged airplane which was equipped with oxygen, and a storm scope. No documentation was located to indicate that the pilot was ever trained in high altitude flying, in operating a turbocharged airplane, and in the use of the on board WX detection system. Meteorological studies indicated that the storm cells near the accident site were developing very quickly, and were extremely turbulent. The left wing, vertical stabilizer, and all the pieces of the stabilizer were found approximately 4,000 feet west of the fuselage and right wing.

History of flight

On July 19, 1999, at 1421 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-32R-301T, N22KC, was destroyed when it broke up in-flight and impacted terrain near Magdalena, New Mexico. The instrument rated private pilot and his passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was owned by the pilot and operated by R.J. and R.K., Inc., of Panama City, Florida, under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The cross-country personal flight originated from Lubbock, Texas, approximately 2 hours, 4 minutes before the accident. An IFR flight plan had been filed with Las Vegas, Nevada, as the destination.

On the day of the accident, the pilot flew from Panama City, Florida, to Lubbock, Texas; a distance of 847 nautical miles (nm) in 5.3 hours. He had his fuel tanks topped off with 90.6 gallons of 100 LL, and he departed Lubbock at 1217 on a VFR clearance. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records indicate that at 1259, N22KC was level at 14,500 feet mean sea level (msl), and at 1327 the pilot requested an IFR clearance for an altitude of 18,000 feet msl. At 1402, the pilot requested a turn to the south for weather avoidance. At 1409, the Albuquerque Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) controller asked the pilot how much further south he planned to deviate. The pilot advised the controller that it would be 5 to 10 miles further before he could turn to the northwest. This was the pilot's last transmission.

Radar data indicates that at 1418, N22KC was at 17,800 feet, and approximately 48 seconds later was at 15,500 feet. This calculated to a 2,875 ft/min rate of descent. The next two primary radar returns indicated that N22KC turned from a westbound heading to an eastbound heading. The last primary radar return was located at N33 degrees 58.43 minutes, W107 degrees 34.98 minutes.

A rancher, located at approximately N33 degrees 58.82', W107 degrees 34.68', reported hearing a "sharp report" at approximately the time of the accident. At 1433, a U.S. Forest Service employee, manning at forest fire watch tower, reported seeing smoke in the vicinity of the accident. Forest service personnel from the Magdalena office were sent to investigate, and N22KC was found.

Personnel information

According to FAA records, the pilot received his instrument rating on June 22, 1997. The pilot reported on his FAA medical application, dated January 19, 1998, that he had 500 hours of flight experience and that he had flown 100 hours in the last 6 months. The pilot's flight instructor, in Panama City, reported that the pilot completed his required FAA Part 61 flight review in March of 1999 (total flight time of 3 to 4 hours).

The pilot's first airplane was a Piper Archer. His second airplane was a new 1997 Piper Saratoga (PA-32R-301, N96KC), which he purchased in July of 1997; it was a normal aspirated airplane. On August 5, 1997, he had a B.F. Goodrich WX-950+ Storm Scope installed. In February of 1999, the pilot traded in N96KC for a new 1999 Saratoga (PA-32R-301T, N22KC), and on February 8, 1999, had a B.F. Goodrich WX-1000+ Storm Scope with Sky Watch installed.

The pilot's flight instructor in Panama City, Florida, said that he gave the pilot 20 hours of flight instruction in a Piper Saratoga before the pilot purchased N96KC in June, 1997. When the pilot purchased N96KC, The New Piper Aircraft, Inc., gave the pilot three free days of training [purchased from SimCom (then Attitudes International, Inc.)] in Vero Beach, Florida, in his new airplane. When the pilot purchased N22KC in February 1999, he was again offered free training in his new turbocharged aircraft. SimCom records indicate that the pilot signed up for the training on January 26, 1999, but then canceled it the next day. The only documented flight/training that the pilot had in his new airplane was the 3 to 4 hour flight that he had with his Panama City flight instructor in March of 1999.

The pilot's flight instructor said that he believed that this (N22KC) was the first turbocharged aircraft that the pilot had ever flown. The flight instructor said that when he flew with the pilot in March, he observed that the pilot was "very new with the equipment [panel displays, electronics operation, and airplane systems]." Additionally, no documentation was found which indicated that the pilot had ever been trained in high altitude flying (the required use of supplemental oxygen at 12,500 feet or greater [see FAR 91.211]) or in the use of his WX-1000+ storm scope.

Aircraft information

The airplane was a single engine, propeller-driven, six seat airplane, which was manufactured by The New Piper Aircraft, Inc., in January, 1999. It was certificated for a maximum gross takeoff weight of 3,600 pounds. The airplane was powered by a Textron Lycoming TIO-540-AH1A, six cylinder, reciprocating, horizontally opposed, direct drive, fuel injected, turbocharged engine which had a maximum takeoff rating of 300 horsepower. The airplane had a service ceiling of 20,000 feet. At the time of the accident, maintenance records and the flight's duration suggest that the airframe had accumulated approximately 74 hours of flight time.

The airplane was equipped with a built in supplemental oxygen system for high altitude flying. No documentation was found which indicated that the system had been serviced with oxygen. The B.F. Goodrich WX-1000+ storm scope with Sky Watch had stabilized heading, a feature which continually aligned the electrical discharges displayed with heading changes. Detected electrical discharges would have remained displayed on the screen for approximately 5 minutes, unless the pilot manually terminated them. Sky Watch, a general aviation technology like TCAS (Traffic Collision And Avoidance System), would detect other aircraft equipped with a transponder and display them on the same screen (effective range, 6 nm).

The airplane's autopilot was a S-Tec System 55, which had been modified, with Service Letter No. 99-002, for smoother altitude capture during high rate of climb (see attached document). A technician with Southern Avionics and Com, Inc. (they did the Service Letter modification), in Mobile, Alabama, said that the pilot told him that "the autopilot was working fine, and he was pleased with it." The technician reported that the pilot told him that he "wanted the Service Letter modifications done as soon as possible, because he wanted the latest equipment."

The pilot's flight instructor from Panama City, Florida, last flew N22KC on July 9, 1999, and he said that "everything worked well" during that flight.

Meteorological information

At 1353, the weather conditions at the Truth Or Consequences Municipal Airport (elevation 4,850 feet), 150 degrees 45 nautical miles (nm) from the accident site, were as follows: wind 200 degrees (variable from 170 to 230 degrees) at 8 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; cloud condition clear; temperature 82 degrees Fahrenheit; dew point 57 degrees Fahrenheit; altimeter 30.17 inches of mercury.

The National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) meteorology group chairman stated that the pilot was likely in visual contact with the convective buildups which extended northeast to southwest over central New Mexico as he was attempting to navigate through the band of thunderstorms (see attached meteorological report). He said that two thunderstorm cells which were near the accident site at the time of the accident were "very strong and developing rapidly." He said that the closest cell to the accident site, grew from approximately 35,000 feet tops to 46,000 feet tops from approximately 1420 to 1430. He said that severe to extreme turbulence was likely in the vicinity of these cells. He said that weather data suggested that N22KC entered instrument meteorological conditions at approximately 1418.

The National Weather Service had is