Accident Synopsis
On 17 April 1995, a Cessna T337G Pressurized Skymaster, registered N6CY, departed from Portimão Aerodrome, Portugal, at approximately 07:30 local time. The aircraft was on a flight plan to Ibiza, with two occupants on board. During the takeoff roll, after traveling about 560 meters, the aircraft began braking and veered left, leaving tire marks on the runway. The left main wheel brake mark disappeared in the last 10 meters before departing the asphalt, while a pronounced brake mark from the right main wheel remained, indicating an attempt to correct the heading and reduce speed. The aircraft continued on the left grass for 115 meters in a level attitude. Due to the sloping terrain, it became slightly airborne before striking the bank of the Alvor River with the nose gear, left main gear, and the front propeller. The impact caused the aircraft to overturn, coming to rest inverted and partially submerged. Both occupants died from injuries and water ingestion.
Flight History
The aircraft arrived at Portimão from Ibiza the previous day at 12:01 local. After landing, the pilot contacted a maintenance company about an oil and fuel leak from the rear engine. That afternoon, the aircraft was refueled with 365 liters of AVGAS 100LL, and maintenance personnel inspected the rear engine, tightening oil and fuel lines and rocker cover caps. A slight fuel leak at the front left cylinder injector was also corrected. After a run-up, no further anomalies were detected. The pilot had filed a ZULU flight plan (VFR then IFR) to Ibiza with an alternate of Palma de Mallorca, estimating 2 hours 20 minutes flight time with a maximum endurance of 5 hours.
On the morning of the accident, the pilot started the engines at 07:25, taxied to the holding position likely performing engine and systems checks, then taxied to runway 29. The takeoff roll began about 80 meters from the runway threshold. A witness stationed approximately 400 meters from runway 11 threshold reported hearing abrupt engine power changes and "raters" during the takeoff roll, suggestive of partial engine failure.
Aircraft Information
The Cessna T337G is a high-wing, twin-engine aircraft with a pressurized cabin. It is equipped with two turbocharged, fuel-injected, horizontally opposed six-cylinder engines mounted in tandem, and constant-speed propellers. The tricycle landing gear is fully retractable. The accident aircraft was manufactured in 1973, serial number P3370121, and was registered in the United States. The engines were Continental TSIO-360C/CB, and the propellers were McCauley.
Maintenance Records
No maintenance records were found at the accident site. The investigation requested documentation from the NTSB and FAA. Received records, though incomplete, showed multiple previous owners and that the rear engine had been converted to a different model. No airworthiness records existed after July 1992, when the aircraft left the United States for Germany.
Damage and Injuries
The aircraft was destroyed by impact forces and partial immersion. Both occupants sustained fatal injuries.