Piper PA-23-250 EC-CAC Accident at Cuatro Vientos Airport

Incident Overview and Flight Details On September 30, 2004, at 09:45 UTC, a Piper PA-23-250, registration EC-CAC, operated by Servicios Politécnicos Aéreos, S. A., was conducting a commercial aerial photography flight at Cuatro Vientos Airport in Madrid. The aircraft was equipped with two Lycoming IO-540-C4B5 engines and was carrying two occupants: the pilot in command and a photographer. The flight was planned to last four hours, with the aircraft taking off and landing at the same airport. ## Sequence of Events The pilot completed a pre-flight inspection with no abnormalities noted and received clearance to take off from runway 28. Approximately 200 meters into the takeoff roll, the pilot reported feeling a slight bump and hearing a metallic sound. The aircraft began to vibrate, and the nose started to lower, causing the propellers to strike the asphalt. The pilot aborted the takeoff, reduced engine power, and attempted to raise the nose by pulling back on the controls. The pilot also shut off the mixture, magnetos, master switch, and fuel valves. Despite these actions, the nose of the aircraft contacted the runway, leaving skid marks until the aircraft came to a stop. ## Damage and Emergency Response The aircraft stopped 1,430 meters from the threshold of runway 28, with the right wheel on the runway edge line and the left side of the aircraft off the paved area. The pilot steered the aircraft onto a grassy area to prevent a fire caused by friction with the runway, using the left brake gently. Both occupants evacuated the aircraft unassisted. Emergency services arrived quickly and applied water with foam to prevent a fire, as fuel had leaked from the semi-wing vents. The aircraft sustained major damage to the front fuselage, propellers, and nose gear. The nose wheel had burst, and tire tread remnants were found on the runway. As the aircraft left the runway, it passed over a runway edge light, which was damaged and had to be replaced. ## Investigation Findings The investigation determined that the accident was caused by the loss of control during the takeoff roll due to a nose wheel blowout. The blowout caused the aircraft to slide on the rim, leading to the failure of nose gear components and subsequent major damage. Inspection of the wheel revealed a cut starting from the center of the tire, which did not follow the same pattern as other damage. This central cut was likely the origin of the tire failure. No abnormalities were noted during the pre-flight inspection, suggesting the damage may have occurred during taxiing to the runway. No foreign objects were found on the runway that could have damaged the wheel during the takeoff roll.