What happened
On November 15, 2020, a Cessna A-188B, registration HI923, was conducting agricultural spraying operations over a banana plantation near La Laguna, Esperanza, in the Valverde Province. The aircraft, operated by Compañía de Aspersiones Aéreas, S.R.L. (CODEACA), had departed from Peñuela Aerodrome to apply agricultural inputs.
During its fifth pass over the crops, the aircraft experienced a loss of engine power. The pilot attempted to manage the situation by jettisoning the 120-gallon chemical load to reduce weight and gain altitude in an effort to reach the airfield. However, due to the low altitude, the pilot was forced to perform a controlled emergency landing on irregular terrain. The impact caused significant damage to the aircraft, including a broken landing gear, deformed wings, and a broken windshield, but the pilot emerged from the wreckage uninjured.
The investigation
The CIAA investigation focused on the mechanical performance of the Continental IO-520-D2/B engine and the pilot's response to the power loss. Investigators examined the aircraft's maintenance records, which showed a recent 100-hour inspection completed in August 2020, and confirmed the aircraft's airworthiness was valid at the time of the accident.
While the pilot noted a slight lack of power during an earlier pass—which he initially attributed to wind and temperature conditions—the investigation focused on the sudden loss of power during the fifth pass. At the time of the final report, the investigation noted that the operator had not yet provided the results of the engine teardown report, leaving the specific internal cause of the power loss undetermined.