ERA23LA040

After an uneventful flight and landing the pilot purchased 10 gallons of 100LL aviation fuel for a total fuel load of 27 gallons for his next flight to his destination airport about 55 nautical miles away. The takeoff and initial climb were normal, but shortly after retracting flaps and making a power adjustment, the engine began to lose power and his attempt to regain power was unsuccessful. The pilot stated there was “no roughness” in the engine before or during the power loss. Unable to maintain level flight, and at an altitude of 300 ft above ground level, he made a forced landing on a paved road. During the landing attempt, the airplane struck treetops and a fence, shearing off the landing gear. The airplane skidded about 500 ft before coming to rest against a guardrail, sustaining substantial damage during the impact. Recovered fuel revealed no discrepancies or contamination and the flight computer showed 26 gallons were on board at the time of the accident. Examination of the engine and its subcomponents did not reveal any reason for the loss of engine power. An examination, teardown, and functional test of the turbo charger revealed rotational scoring on the intake housing and all components were observed to be normal. The functional test did not reveal any anomalies. While rust was discovered on the shaft and housing, the airplane was stored outside in hot humid conditions months after recovery, so it is likely that it developed after the accident and did not contribute to the loss of power. Examination of the engine revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation, and the reason for loss of engine power could not be determined.

On October 23, 2022, about 1610 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-32RT-300T, N39628, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Lake Worth, Florida. The commercial pilot sustained serious injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to the pilot, after an uneventful flight and landing at Palm Beach County Park Airport (LNA), West Palm Beach, Florida, he purchased 10 gallons of aviation fuel for a total fuel load of 27 gallons for his next flight to Okeechobee County Airport (OBE), Okeechobee, Florida, about 55 nautical miles away. The takeoff and initial climb were normal, but shortly after retracting flaps and making a power adjustment, the engine began to lose power. His attempt to regain power was unsuccessful, The pilot stated there was “no roughness” in the engine before or during the power loss. Unable to maintain level flight, and at an altitude of 300 ft above ground level, he performed a forced landing on a paved dead-end road. During the landing attempt, the airplane struck treetops and a fence, shearing off the landing gear as it landed on the road. The airplane skidded about 500 ft before coming to rest against a guardrail. Postaccident examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed substantial damage to the underside of the fuselage and wings. The left wing was fractured midspan and both fuel tanks were compromised. About 1 gallon of fuel was recovered from the ruptured fuel tanks. An electronic fuel quantity gauge indicated about 26 gallons remaining with 1.2 gallons used during the flight. Fuel samples were taken from what remained in the ruptured fuel tanks, and the fuel had the odor and color of 100 low lead aviation fuel with no contamination noted. A fuel sample from the fuel farm at LNA did not reveal any contamination. Forty two aircraft were fueled from the same fuel farm before the accident airplane and no other issues were reported. The propeller blades (3) had significant leading-edge gouges and were curved aft, with one blade having a tightly curved tip. The spinner was crushed inwards on one side and showed some rotational damage. The propeller governor and control linkage were functional and remained connected. The throttle, propeller, and mixture controls were actuated and they freely moved the cables and associated linkages to the engine. Both magnetos were removed and manually operated; both magnetos produced blue/purple spark at all the posts from low to high rpms. All 12 of the spark plugs displayed normal coloration and normal electrodes as compared to the Champion Aerospace AV-27 Check-A-Plug chart. Two lower spark plugs (Nos. 1 and 3) had some corrosion around the threads but the electrodes were intact. The engine-driven fuel pump was intact and operational. It was manually rotated with a drill and expelled fuel at low through high rpm settings. The induction system was unremarkable.The oil filter was opened and the pleats contained no trace amounts of ferrous material. The oil appeared mahogany brown in color and all lubricated components appeared to be well lubricated. The engine oil suction screen was free of contaminants. The engine crankshaft could not be manually rotated. It would bind after about 45° of travel in both directions; however, the pilot stated the propeller continued to rotate after the loss of engine power. There was rotational damage to the propeller and gouges/slice marks in the pavement from the propeller. A subsequent borescope examination of all six cylinders, pistons, and valves revealed no anomalies on the piston faces, valve faces, and interior of the cylinders. The fuel injectors were free of any obstructions. The turbo charger compressor section was frozen in place and could not be rotated. Visually there was no damage to the compressor blades. They were clean and exhibited no damage prior to closer examination. The unit had superficial damage to the shroud but was otherwise intact. The unit was sent to the manufacturer for an observed examination, teardown, and functional test that revealed rust between the shaft and housing. The airframe had been stored outside in a wet and humid environment for several months after recovery. The shaft was removed, and the bearings and journals looked normal. Nothing was seen that would prevent normal operation. There was rotational scoring on the intake housing. Examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. A review of the airplane’s maintenance records revealed that the last annual inspection was completed on May 4, 2022, at an airframe total time of 3041.17 hours. This inspection coincided with the removal and replacement of a “zero time” overhauled engine along with several other components including the turbocharger and turbocharger over boost pressure relief valve that was installed following overhaul. Additional maintenance was accomplished on September 24, 2022, at 32.53 hours since major overhaul, which included an oil change, inspection, and engine runup during which no discrepancies were noted.