History of Flight
On June 26, 2009, at 0904 central daylight time, a Piper PA-32R-300, registration N38171, operated by PropAire, Inc., of St. Louis, Missouri, was substantially damaged after striking a tree and impacting terrain shortly after takeoff from Gaston's Airstrip (3MO) in Lakeview, Arkansas. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91 with no flight plan filed. The pilot and five passengers were on board; the pilot and two passengers were fatally injured, one passenger was seriously injured, and one passenger sustained minor injuries. The flight originated from Spirit of St. Louis Airport (SUS) three days earlier and was returning to SUS.
According to GPS data, the airplane departed SUS on June 23 at 0647 and arrived at Gaston's at 0703. On the accident day, the pilot obtained a weather briefing at 0815 via Lockheed Martin. A Gaston employee drove the party to the airstrip and noted that passengers wore plastic bags on their feet and carried luggage on their laps. The employee believed the airplane appeared overloaded and that the engine did not sound right before takeoff.
A passenger in the right front seat reported that the pilot said they would need the entire runway. The airplane lifted off at the runway end, dropped into a shallow valley, touched the ground, lifted off again, touched down a second time, hit a tree, and rolled several times.
Witnesses observed the airplane with a nose-high attitude, losing altitude, and wings "wig-wagging" and "porpoising." One witness saw the airplane veer right and a tree shear off the left wing. The first 9-1-1 call was received at 0904.
Crew Information
The 52-year-old pilot held a private pilot certificate with single-engine land and instrument ratings, issued April 22, 1992, and a third-class medical certificate dated March 17, 2008, with no restrictions. His logbooks showed 673.8 total hours, all in single-engine land airplanes, with 165.3 hours in the Piper PA-32R-300. His most recent flight review was on March 20, 2009, in the accident airplane.
Aircraft Information
N38171, a 1977 Piper PA-32R-300 (serial number 32R-7780392), was equipped with a Lycoming IO-540-K1G5D engine (300 hp) and a Hartzell three-blade constant-speed propeller. The last annual and 100-hour inspections were on March 10, 2009, at a tachometer time of 2,107.91 hours. Airframe total time was 9,011.45 hours; engine time since new was 8,390.50 hours and since major overhaul (May 11, 2000) was 2,107.91 hours.
Meteorological Information
At 0853, Ozark Regional Airport (5 miles east) reported calm wind, visibility 6 miles in haze, clear sky, temperature 27°C, dew point 23°C, altimeter 29.91 inHg. Marion County Regional Airport (5 miles south-southwest) reported calm wind, visibility 10 miles, few clouds at 6,000 feet, temperature 28°C, dew point 22°C, altimeter 29.91 inHg. Witnesses described hot, hazy, and muggy conditions. Density altitude at Gaston's was calculated as 2,367 feet.
Airport Information
Gaston's Airstrip (3MO) is at elevation 479 feet with one turf runway, 06-24, 3,200 feet by 55 feet. The grass was well manicured with a height of approximately 1 inch.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The accident site was 0.7 miles past the runway end. Tire tracks in tall grass led to a downed barbed wire fence and a tree with propeller strike marks. The left wing and left rear cargo door were at the tree base. The wreckage lay beyond, twisted, with numerous personal effects scattered. The fuel selector was on the left main tank; landing gear was down; flap handle was flat; elevator trim jackscrew showed 8 threads (neutral is 5). Cockpit instruments indicated various settings, including altimeter at 800 feet and manifold pressure at 30 inches. Engine examination revealed oil in crankcase, thumb compression on all cylinders, normal spark plug coloration, clean fuel screen and oil filter, and magnetos producing spark. All three propeller blades were bent aft midspan with tips curled forward.
Medical and Pathological Information
Autopsy attributed the pilot's death to multiple traumatic injuries, manner accident. Toxicology showed no carbon monoxide, cyanide, or ethanol; ibuprofen was detected.
Tests and Research
A Garmin 496 GPS recovered from the wreckage provided flight data. The GPS recorded positions, times, altitudes, and speeds during the takeoff roll and initial climb. Speeds ranged from 0 to 78 mph; altitudes were around 494-508 feet until a final descent to 194 feet.
Weight and balance calculations indicated the airplane was overweight at both SUS departure (3,944 lbs vs. max 3,600 lbs) and at Gaston's takeoff (3,788 lbs vs. max 3,600 lbs). The center of gravity was within limits but near the aft limit. Performance chart computations for a turf runway (with 10% penalty for short grass) showed a flaps-up takeoff ground roll of approximately 1,870 feet and distance over 50-foot obstacle of 3,190 feet, exceeding the runway length of 3,200 feet. With 25° flaps, the ground roll was 1,331 feet and obstacle clearance 1,870 feet.
A videotape taken by a guest showed the nose wheel lift off about one-third down the runway; the airplane maintained a nose-high attitude, lifted off at the runway end, disappeared into a valley, then reappeared with wings "wig-wagging." PropAire officials reviewed the tape and commented that the nose-high attitude prevented achieving flying speed.
Additional Information
No flight plan was filed. The flight was personal under Part 91.