Low-Altitude Maneuvering · NTSB CEN12FA628
PIPER PA-23-250 — Bullard, TX
| Date | September 12, 2012 |
| Location | Bullard, TX |
| Aircraft | PIPER PA-23-250 |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Maneuvering Unknown or undetermined |
| Pilot age | 51 |
| Pilot total time | 938 hrs · Building experience |
| Time in type | 24 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-(general)-(general)-Not specified - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft structures-Wing structure-(general)-Capability exceeded - C
- Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-(general)-Pilot - C
What happened
The airplane was en route to its destination when it was observed to make several turns before it pitched nose up, climbed, rolled to the right, and then headed toward the ground nose first. Several witnesses observed airplane components floating down after the airplane. All witnesses reported hearing loud engine noises throughout the event. Impact signatures were consistent with a nose down attitude with a near vertical descent angle. Distribution of the airplane wreckage supported the observation by eyewitnesses of an inflight breakup. An examination found that both wings failed in overload with positive wing loading. In addition, there was no evidence of flight control over travel or flutter. It could not be determined whether the pilot intended to perform the abnormal maneuver or if it was the result of a physiological issue.