- Date
- March 7, 1991, 07:01 local (12:01 UTC)
- Place
- Rancocas, NJ
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N74994Piper PA-30-160
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 7, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 36885
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
The pilot-in-command failed to maintain airspeed on initial take off climb resulting in a stall and in flight collision with terrain. Contributing to the accident was a loss of engine power for undetermined reason and a gusty crosswind condition.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Loss of engine power
1 engineFactor
Reason for occurrence undeterminedCause
Weather condition - crosswindFactor
Weather condition - gustsFactor
Airspeed - not maintainedCause
Stall - inadvertent
In flight collision with terrain/water
Analysis
The pilot began a take off roll with a 90 degree crosswind, when the left engine started to lose power. The airplane became airborne, veered to the left, lost airspeed, stalled and collided with the ground.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N74994
- Reported as
- Piper PA-30-160
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 30-562
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-320-B1A, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Executive/Corporate · Part 91
- Operator
- Inductotherm Corp.
- Registered owner
- Inductotherm Corp.
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Destination
- N23 · Sidney, NY
- Airport
- 3NJ6 · Inductotherm, runway 2, 3,856 × 60 ft, asphalt
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 28
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,705 total · 137 in this make and model · 2,465 as pilot in command · 69 in the last 90 days · 17 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 290° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None