What happened
On 30 October 2025, at approximately 8:33 AM, a Piper PA-28R-201, registration SP-TBK, departed from the Grądy (EPGY) landing field. The flight was a skill test intended for a candidate pilot to obtain an Instrument Rating (IR) for a PPL(A) license, conducted in the presence of an examiner.
The flight proceeded normally through the takeoff, climb, and cruise phases. While performing the approach to runway 01 at Olsztyn-Mazury Airport (EPSY) via the VOR Y 19 procedure, the candidate pilot noticed that the engine was not responding to changes in the power lever, remaining at idle. The examiner verified that the lever was unresponsive.
Upon determining that a landing at the airport was not feasible, the crew decided to seek an emergency landing site in off-airport terrain. The examiner took control of the aircraft and selected a landing area. The aircraft was configured with the landing gear down for the glide. After touchdown, the aircraft traveled approximately 150 meters before striking a transverse earthen embankment. The impact caused the nose gear and both main landing gear legs to break, after which the aircraft slid on its belly for several dozen meters. No injuries were sustained by the two crew members, though the aircraft suffered significant damage.
The investigation
The PKBWL investigation team collected statements from both the examiner and the candidate pilot. Investigators secured all relevant aircraft airworthiness documentation, personnel records, and fuel samples for analysis. A visual inspection of the aircraft was conducted to determine the cause of the engine's failure to respond to power lever inputs.
Findings
- The primary cause of the engine's failure to respond to power lever adjustments was a break in the injector servo control cable.
- The aircraft sustained significant structural damage, including a broken nose gear, fractured main landing gear legs, a bent propeller, and various deformations to the fuselage and wings.