Mechanical & Engine Failure · NTSB ERA20LA177
Piper PA34 — Pembroke Pines, FL
| Date | May 12, 2020 |
| Location | Pembroke Pines, FL |
| Aircraft | Piper PA34 |
| Purpose of flight | Instructional |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Uncontrolled descent Loss of engine power (partial) |
| Pilot age | 21 |
| Pilot total time | 536 hrs · Building experience |
| Time in type | Unknown |
| Fatalities | 1, 1 serious |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Aircraft-Aircraft power plant-Power plant-(general)-Unknown/Not determined
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Altitude-Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Instructor/check pilot
What happened
The flight instructor reported that, about 10 minutes into the instructional flight, the right engine lost power. The flight instructor took control of the airplane and according to radar data turned right 180° toward the departure airport. The airplane descended from about 775 ft to 450 ft during the turn. The flight instructor stated that the right engine was windmilling while in the turn and that he did not secure it until after completing the turn back to the departure airport. The flight instructor stated that after the turn, the airplane was unable to maintain altitude as a result of the left engine not producing full power, so he attempted to land the airplane on a residential street. The airplane impacted powerlines and then a road, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage, wings, and empennage.
Postaccident examination of the airframe and engines revealed no evidence of any mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation prior to the accident. Therefore, it could not be determined why the right engine lost power and why the left engine appeared to only produce partial power. It is likely the flight instructor’s decision to turn 180° before securing the right engine resulted in a loss of altitude needed to make the return flight back to the airport at a safe altitude above ground obstacles.