What happened
On May 6, 2000, a Piper PA-28-161 Cherokee Warrior II, registration C-GQHE, was departing runway 01 at the Sydney, Nova and Scotia airport for a local pleasure flight. The aircraft was operated by a pilot with 65.3 total flying hours, accompanied by three passengers. The flight began with a rolling take-off, where the pilot initiated the run near the runway threshold without first stopping to verify full engine power.
During the initial stages of the take-off roll, observers noted that the aircraft was accelerating at an abnormally slow rate. Despite this, the pilot continued the roll and forced the aircraft into the air approximately 500 feet from the end of the 6000-foot runway. Shortly after liftoff, the stall warning horn activated. The aircraft entered a steep, right-wing-low attitude, followed by a nose-down, left-wing-low descent. The aircraft struck trees and the ground 2000 feet beyond the runway end. The pilot sustained fatal injuries, while the three passengers sustained minor injuries.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the engine performance and the environmental conditions at the time of the accident. Investigators examined the engine, the carburettor, and the flight controls. While the engine was found to be capable of producing full rated power during testing, the weather conditions at the time of the accident—specifically the temperature and dewpoint—were highly conducive to the formation of serious carburettor ice at any power setting.
Investigators also reviewed the pilot's actions and the aircraft's configuration. It was noted that the pilot had unfastened his seat belt and shoulder harness during taxi to adjust his seat and had not refastened them prior to the take-off roll. The investigation also looked into the take-off method, noting that the pilot used a rolling start rather than a standard stop-and-go procedure, which prevented him from detecting the power loss earlier.