Piper PA-30 accident near Visalia, CA
On January 14, 2006, a Piper PA-30 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Visalia, CA. 4 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- January 14, 2006
- Place
- Visalia, CA
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-30 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 4 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 36.311°N, 119.384°W
- NTSB ID
- 20060120X00103
Official records · LAX06FA089
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
1.1 History of Flight On January 13, 2006, about 1819 Pacific standard time, a Piper PA-30 (Twin Comanche), N7291Y, impacted terrain 410 feet from the approach end of runway 30 at Visalia Municipal Airport, Visalia, California. The commercial pilot was the registered owner of the airplane and operated it under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The pilot and three passengers sustained fatal injuries; the airplane was destroyed. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed. The airplane was landing following a flight from Byron Airport, Byron, California, where the pilot had picked up two child passengers and departed at 1711. The airplane was based at Visalia. The airplane was reported overdue to the airport manager at 2145 on January 13. He received information that that the airplane's services were terminated by Fresno Approach Control at 1811, approximately 7 miles north of Visalia. At this point, the airport manager checked the emergency frequency for the transmission of an emergency locator transmitter (ELT) but no aural alarm was heard. He then began a ground search for the airplane and located it near the approach end of runway 30 at 2215. Emergency response personnel were then notified. 1.1.1 Witness Information A witness spoke with investigators the morning following the accident. He was driving parallel to the runway about 1820 on a local road and saw the event. He saw the airplane banking and heard the engines running prior to its impact with the ground. After it impacted, there were no other sounds. The witness described what
Probable cause
the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed during the landing approach, which resulted in a stall and uncontrolled descent. Contributing factors to the accident were the pilot's impairment due to his prolonged use of a highly sedating over-the-counter sleep aid and fatigue due to lack of sleep.
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Browse: California · 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.
