What happened
On September 19, 2015, at approximately 3:18 p.m., a PA-32RT-300T aircraft, registration N-36401, performed an emergency landing on the Autopista Duarte, near the Jeremías section in La Vega, Dominican Republic. The aircraft was operating a private flight from Miami Executive Airport (KTMB) in Florida, with a planned refueling stop in the Bahamas, en route to Aeropuerto Internacional Dr. Joaquín Balaguer (MDJB) in Santo Domingo.
During the flight over the Northern Mountain Range, the aircraft encountered severe turbulence. During the descent and subsequent landing on the highway, the right wingtip struck a bridge guardrail, and the left wingtip collided with a road sign, causing minor structural damage to the aircraft. The two occupants, the pilot and a passenger, were uninjured and evacuated the aircraft safely.
The investigation
The CIAA investigation focused on the sequence of events leading to the engine failure. Investigators examined the aircraft's maintenance records, which showed the plane had undergone its annual inspection in April 2015. The investigation also included a review of radio communications, where the pilot attempted to contact Santo Domingo Information to declare the emergency, eventually using another aircraft on the frequency as a relay to notify control of the intention to land on the highway.
Physical examination of the aircraft revealed that the cover protecting the fuel drain valve showed signs of wear from multiple impacts. Investigators also analyzed the cabin interior, noting that the turbulence had displaced various unsecured objects within the cockpit/cabin area.
Findings
- The engine failed due to fuel starvation after the fuel tanks were depleted.
- Severe turbulence caused unsecured objects inside the cabin to shift.
- One of these objects struck the cover of the fuel drain valve, inadvertently activating the drain lever.
- This resulted in an unnoticed and continuous fuel leak during flight.
- The pilot failed to monitor the fuel quantity instruments closely enough to identify the depletion and divert to the nearby Cibao International Airport (MDST) before the engine failed.