History of Flight
On January 22, 2015, about 0913 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-23, N465JA, registered to 55XRAY, Inc., and operated by Tailwheels, Etc., descended into a building northwest of the Lakeland Linder Regional Airport (LAL), Lakeland, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 local instructional flight. The airplane was destroyed and the flight instructor and pilot-rated student were fatally injured. The flight originated about 0847 from LAL.
The purpose of the flight was training for the pilot-rated student, who intended to add a multi-engine rating to his private pilot certificate. The flight was the 7th lesson, scheduled between 0800 and 1000 hours. A typical procedure during the 7th lesson was an engine shutdown (typically the right) and to feather the right propeller. In that scenario, the flight would depart LAL and proceed north while climbing to between 3,000 and 4,000 feet mean sea level, then return and, when over LAL, secure the right engine and feather the right propeller.
Security video depicted the pilot-rated student walking to the airplane; an employee reported watching him perform a preflight inspection. Another flight instructor observed the student perform a walk-around and add oil to the left engine. No anomalies were reported. The airplane then taxied to another spot on the ramp and turned northeast, remaining for 2 minutes 46 seconds. ATC communications showed the flightcrew requested taxi to the active runway with a northbound departure and were cleared for takeoff about 0847.
Uncorrelated radar data showed the airplane at 0849:48 about 1.3 nautical miles northeast of the departure end of runway 05; altitude was not reported. The airplane proceeded north, performed airwork, then flew south toward LAL. At 0911:43, while north of I-4, the airplane was at 3,600 feet msl; no altitude was reported for subsequent returns. A witness about 1.8 nautical miles from the accident site reported seeing the airplane southbound at an estimated 10,000 feet, hearing two pops from the engine(s), and then the engine "quit." Another witness northeast of the accident site reported the airplane "nose-dived" after the second pop, followed by an explosion and black smoke. A third witness southbound on Polk Parkway saw a light-colored airplane in a nose-down attitude, then saw something separate from the front of the airplane. Other witnesses near the crash site reported hearing an unusual engine sound and seeing the airplane descend vertically nose-first before impact and explosion. Security cameras captured the final descent and post-impact fireball.
Personnel Information
The flight instructor, age 61, held an airline transport pilot certificate with multi-engine land rating, a commercial pilot certificate with single-engine land rating, and a flight instructor certificate with single-engine, multi-engine, and instrument airplane ratings. He held a second-class medical certificate with a limitation to wear corrective lenses. He had about 6,609 total hours, including about 2,520 hours in multi-engine aircraft. He logged about 60 hours in the accident airplane from January 2014 to January 2015, and 44.4 hours as an instructor in that airplane since adding a multi-engine instructor rating in June 2014.
The pilot-rated student, age 40, held a private pilot certificate with single-engine land and instrument airplane ratings, and a second-class medical certificate with no limitation. He logged 333.0 total hours, including 6 flights (7.6 hours) in the accident airplane, all with the accident flight instructor.
Aircraft Information
The Piper PA-23, serial number 23-1033, was manufactured in 1957. It was powered by two 150-horsepower Lycoming O-320-A1B engines and equipped with Hartzell HC-C2YL-2CUF constant speed propellers installed per Supplemental Type Certificate SA00721CH. Maintenance records from 2009 onward indicated the last annual inspection was on December 15, 2014, at 5,922.1 hours total time. The hour meter showed 5,936.8 hours after the last flight before the accident, an elapsed time of 14.7 hours since the annual inspection.
On December 8, 2014, FAA personnel conducted a ramp inspection and noted a cracked baffle in the right engine compartment and fuel seepage from the inboard right fuel cap. The operator later reported the baffle was repaired and the fuel cap area cleaned and inspected; new gaskets were ordered. An airframe logbook entry on December 23, 2014, indicated installation of a new right main fuel cell.
Meteorological Information
A surface observation at LAL at 0850 reported wind from 080 degrees at 3 knots, visibility 7 statute miles, scattered clouds at 12,000 feet, temperature 18°C, dew point 17°C, and altimeter 30.20 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The airplane crashed into a concrete building about 2.4 nautical miles and 326 degrees magnetic from LAL. The building and its contents were destroyed. A bag containing a study guide, a pilot logbook, and pain relief medication was found about 459 feet from the crash site; it showed no fire damage. A piece of rudder with trim tab attached was found 138 feet from the site, with evidence of over travel and structural separation. The instrument panel, avionics, and flight controls were displaced inside the building. The left rudder control cable was fractured and retained for examination. The right wing was not identified; only a portion of the left wing was recovered. Both engines were fire-damaged; detailed examination revealed crankshaft continuity and no pre-impact anomalies.
Probable Cause
The source does not state a probable cause.