Accident Flight
On July 18, 2012, about 1646 Alaska daylight time, a Piper PA-32R-301 airplane, N432LT, was destroyed after an uncontrolled descent and collision with terrain about 43 miles north of Fairbanks, Alaska. The non-instrument rated private pilot and one passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to LNP Saratoga Inc., Palo Alto, California, and operated by West Valley Flying Club, Palo Alto. The flight was conducted as a 14 CFR Part 91 visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country personal flight. At the time of the accident, instrument meteorological conditions were reported in the area. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the departure point. The flight originated at Fort Yukon Airport, Fort Yukon, Alaska, about 1600, en route to Fairbanks, the day's final destination.
According to the leader of the group the accident pilot was flying with, the accident airplane was the third of three touring northern Canada and Alaska. The group was scheduled to fly from Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada, to Fairbanks. The first airplane flew to Fairbanks uneventfully. The other two encountered deteriorating weather, requiring an unscheduled stop in Fort Yukon to refuel. After departing Fort Yukon, they again encountered marginal weather. The pilot of one airplane requested and received an instrument flight rules (IFR) clearance to Fairbanks. The accident airplane continued VFR, and the accident pilot reported to the other pilot that he had found "a good VFR track."
About 1641, the accident pilot contacted Anchorage Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC), requesting an IFR clearance direct to Fairbanks. The controller instructed the pilot to climb to 7,000 feet and issued a clearance. About 1645, ARTCC lost radio and radar contact. No further communications were received, and the airplane did not arrive at Fairbanks. It was reported overdue at 1719. Search and rescue personnel from the Civil Air Patrol located the wreckage about 1948 in an area of mountainous, tundra-covered terrain near the White Mountains. Rescue personnel aboard an Air National Guard HH-60G helicopter reached the site later that night, and a Pararescue Jumper confirmed the occupants were deceased.
Personnel Information
The pilot, age 63, held a private pilot certificate for airplane single-engine land issued by the Federal Aviation Administration on July 13, 2009. He was an Australian national, and his private pilot certificate was valid only when accompanied by his Australian pilot license, which was valid for airplane single-engine, tail-wheel, manual propeller pitch control, and retractable undercarriage. He held a valid Australian Class 2 medical certificate, issued May 16, 2012, with a limitation that reading correction must be available. No personal flight records were located, but on his rental agreement application to the West Valley Flying Club, dated March 12, 2012, he indicated a total flight time of 804 hours.
Aircraft Information
The six-seat, low-wing, retractable-gear airplane, serial number 3213099, was manufactured in 1995. It was powered by a Lycoming IO-540-K1G5 300-hp engine, and equipped with a Hartzell model HC-I3YR-1RF/F7663DR constant-speed propeller. At the last 100-hour inspection on June 26, 2012, the airplane had 3,243 total hours in service. An engine overhaul was completed on February 19, 2004, at 2,132.7 hours.
The fuel system consisted of two interconnected tanks in each wing, total capacity 107 U.S. gallons, 102 useable. Fuel consumption calculations estimated total burn from Inuvik to Fairbanks at 46 gallons. Given proper fueling in Inuvik, the airplane had sufficient fuel.
Meteorological Conditions
A National Transportation Safety Board meteorologist conducted a comprehensive study. The synoptic weather systems influencing the area were documented using standard National Weather Service charts. The Surface Analysis Chart for 1600 ADT July 18, 2012 depicted a low pressure system at 1007 hPa over the Gulf of Alaska with an occluded frontal system and a secondary trough extending into southern Alaska. A stationary front was over the Northern and Interior Seward Peninsula. A high pressure ridge extended over southwestern Alaska. A col extended over the accident site.
Fairbanks International Airport, 43 miles south of the accident, reported at 1653 ADT: wind from 190° at 3 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, few clouds at 1,700 feet agl, scattered at 4,500 feet, overcast at 7,000 feet, temperature 14°C, dew point 8°C, altimeter 29.95 inHg. Rain was reported intermittently at Fairbanks between 1851 July 18 and 1142 July 19.
Wreckage and Impact Information
Continuous poor weather prevented investigators from reaching the site until July 20. The aircraft impacted on a brush and tundra-covered hillside in the foothills of the White Mountains at about 1,600 feet msl. Fragmented wreckage was scattered along a debris path oriented 330° magnetic, about one-quarter mile long. The left wing separated and was found mostly intact; the aileron separated. The fuel cap was missing from the left wing and later found in Fort Yukon; it was not a factor. The vertical stabilizer was found with rudder attached. The left horizontal stabilator separated and was relatively undamaged. The right horizontal stabilator was later found. The fuselage, engine, and right wing were at the main wreckage site, all extensively damaged by postcrash fire. Wings and horizontal stabilator failed under positive loads. The propeller was partially buried; one blade separated at the hub with S-bending and tip gouging; the other two blades showed aft bending.
Medical and Pathological Information
A postmortem examination conducted under the authority of the Alaska State Medical Examiner on July 20, 2012, attributed the cause of death for the pilot to blunt force and thermal injuries. Toxicological examinations by the FAA's Civil Aeromedical Institute on September 28, 2012, were negative for alcohol and drugs. Ethanol at 10 mg/dl was detected in muscle, attributed to sources other than ingestion.
Tests and Research
The wreckage was examined on August 15, 2012, with investigators from Piper Aircraft Company. Control continuity was established for rudder, horizontal stabilator, and aileron cables. The left and right horizontal stabilator sections failed under positive loads, consistent with twisting. The trim jack screw showed 16 threads, full nose up trim. The left wing separated at the root under positive load; no flutter evidence. The right wing had positive load signatures with a slight S-bend, consistent with unloading after left wing separation. The engine sustained extensive thermal damage; the fuel selector valve position could not be determined. Propeller examination found one blade fractured at the shank with leading edge gouging and S-bending; the other two blades bent aft.