What happened
A Piper PA-46-310P lost engine power while in flight, which forced the pilot to perform an emergency landing in a residential area. There were no injuries reported following the incident.
The investigation
Investigators examined the aircraft's fuel system and found approximately one pint of fuel remaining in each wing tank at the time of the accident. The inspection of the accident scene showed no evidence of fuel spillage or leaks, and no evidence of an inflight fuel leak was found on the aircraft fuselage.
Analysis of fuel consumption revealed that while the pilot had planned for an average consumption of 17 gallons per hour (GPH), the actual average consumption for the trip was 19.9 GPH. This exceeded the 17.5 GPH predicted by the Pilot Operating Handbook (POH) for the specific flight conditions.
Furthermore, weight and balance calculations performed during the investigation determined that the aircraft was overweight at takeoff. Although the pilot's initial calculation placed the maximum gross weight (GWT) at 4,116.7 pounds—just 1.3 pounds below the maximum ramp weight of 4,118 pounds—a recalculation using actual passenger and baggage weights showed the aircraft was 260 pounds over its maximum GWT before takeoff. The POH does not provide performance data for operations exceeding the maximum gross weight.