- Date
- April 24, 2026, 17:49 UTC
- Place
- Kissimmee, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N6XTPiper PA-34-220T
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 15, 2026
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20260424005539A
- Case key
- 202893
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
Fracture of the left main landing gear trunnion during landing, which resulted in a loss of directional control during landing and subsequent runway excursion.
Findings · 1
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that after an uneventful final approach, during the landing, the airplane made an immediate uncontrolled right turn after touching down. The pilot applied left rudder input and added full engine power, but the airplane went off the right side of the runway, through a fence, and impacted trees. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings, engine mounts, and elevator. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the right main landing gear axle was bent and the left main landing gear trunnion had cracked in half. Examination of the left main landing gear trunnion’s fracture features revealed that they exhibited signatures consistent with overstress separation. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operations.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6XT
- Reported as
- Piper PA-34-220T
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 34-8233144
- Built
- 1983
- Airframe hours
- 3,986
- Engines
- Cont Motor TSIO-360-KB, 220 horsepower, reciprocatingCont Motor LTSIO-360-KB, 220 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Barrass John
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 20, 2025
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- ISM · Kissimmee Gateway, runway 15, 6,001 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic multifunction display, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Stall warning system, Electronic primary flight display
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 67
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- BasicMed, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- October 10, 2025
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 776 total · 65 in this make and model · 695 as pilot in command · 9 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 100° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.97 inHg
- Observed at
- ISM
- METAR
- METAR KISM 241656Z 10007KT 10SM CLR 27/14 A2997 RMK AO2 SLP149 T02670144 $
Docket · 5
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 15, 2026, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.2 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.