Accident Overview
On September 29, 2018, about 1240 eastern daylight time, a Diamond Aircraft Industries, Inc. (Diamond) DA20-C1, registration N397JA, and a Piper PA28R-180, registration N3907T, collided at the Sebring Regional Airport (SEF), Sebring, Florida. The Diamond was operated by Aamro Aviation Corporation as an instructional flight, while the Piper was operated privately as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and neither flight had filed a flight plan. The Diamond had originated from SEF about 5 minutes earlier, and the Piper from the Peter O'Knight Airport (TPF), Tampa, Florida, about 1015.
Injuries and Damage
The flight instructor aboard the Diamond was not injured, nor were the private pilot and passenger aboard the Piper. The student pilot aboard the Diamond sustained a minor injury. Both airplanes were substantially damaged.
Accident Sequence
According to the flight instructor of the Diamond, the aircraft was practicing touch-and-go landings on runway 14, an uncontrolled airport, with the wind from the east. During the second traffic pattern on the upwind leg, the instructor observed a Piper arriving from the west heading east. As the student pilot turned onto the crosswind and downwind legs, they lost sight of the Piper. The instructor assumed that if the Piper intended to enter the traffic pattern, it would enter left traffic for runway 14 behind them. The student pilot announced the Diamond's position on every leg of the pattern, making left turns, but neither pilot heard an acknowledgment from the Piper. After the Diamond turned onto base and final, the instructor looked for the Piper but did not see it. Following a landing on runway 14, the Diamond was configured for takeoff. As the student pilot advanced the throttle, the tail was contacted by the Piper's left wing.
The pilot of the Piper reported approaching SEF from the northwest quadrant. His first radio call on the common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) was made when the airplane was near the airport crossing midfield at 1,200 feet mean sea level (msl). He then turned onto the downwind leg of the traffic pattern for runway 19, announcing his position, and continued onto base and final, making left turns. He planned to touchdown at the 1,000-foot marker. While flaring about 1 to 2 feet above runway 19, just before the collision, he noted a flash off his right wing. After the collision, he touched down, taxied onto taxiway A2, and secured the airplane.
Communications
Postaccident examination revealed that the Diamond's transceiver was set to 122.7 MHz, which is the published CTAF for SEF. The Piper's transceiver was set to 122.725 MHz. Operational testing showed that transmissions from the Diamond were heard on a portable VHF transceiver, while transmissions from the Piper on the as-found frequency were not heard. After switching to the published CTAF frequency, the transmissions were audible.
Review of recorded LiveATC.net audio for SEF between 1230 and 1300 revealed that radio calls from the Diamond were heard for every leg of the traffic pattern prior to the collision. Only two radio calls attributed to the Piper were heard, both of which were garbled and difficult to comprehend.