Piper PA-46-500TP accident near Albuquerque, NM
On March 8, 2003, a Piper PA-46-500TP (airplane) was involved in an accident near Albuquerque, NM. 3 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- March 8, 2003
- Place
- Albuquerque, NM
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-46-500TP · Airplane
- Injuries
- 3 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 35.166°N, 106.771°W
- NTSB ID
- 20030313X00327
Official records · DEN03FA045
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On March 7, 2003, at 1918 mountain standard time, a Piper PA-46-500TP, N522RF, was destroyed when it impacted terrain near Double Eagle II Airport (AEG), Albuquerque, New Mexico. The instrument rated private pilot and his two passengers were fatally injured. The pilot/owner was operating the airplane under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91. Night, visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal, cross-country flight that originated from Scottsdale, Arizona, 1 hour, 12 minutes before the accident. The pilot canceled his IFR flight plan at 1911:31, and was flying a VFR traffic pattern for a full stop landing at a non-towered airport. The pilot had his airplane topped-off with 120 gallons of Jet-A at Double Eagle II Airport, at 1400, on the day of the accident. His first flight plan indicated that he requested a departure time from Double Eagle II Airport, with a business associate, at 1615. He flew the 270 nautical miles (nm) to Scottsdale, Arizona, on an IFR flight plan; he had requested an altitude of 24,000 feet, and gave a time en route of 1 hour and 25 minutes. He picked up his son, and according to Scottsdale Airport Air Traffic Control (tower), he departed on his return trip at 1806. Radar data from Albuquerque ARTCC (Air Route Traffic Control Center), indicates that the airplane began descending from 25,000 feet (cruise altitude) at 1900:18. At approximately 1911, the pilot canceled his IFR flight plan, and changed his transponder from a discrete code of 4271 to 1200, a non-discrete code. Witnesses said that they heard the pilot anno
Probable cause
The pilot's unstabilized approach and his failure to maintain obstacle clearance. Contributing factors were the dark night light condition, and the static wires.
More accidents in NM
- Gates Learjet 25D, Sep 5, 1993
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- Cessna 421C, Feb 11, 1985
- Beech 58, Mar 26, 1982
Browse: New Mexico · Piper aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
