Piper PA-30 accident near Port Mansfield, TX
On December 11, 2009, a Piper PA-30 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Port Mansfield, TX. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- December 11, 2009
- Place
- Port Mansfield, TX
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-30 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 26.558°N, 97.436°W
- NTSB ID
- 20091212X12336
Official records · CEN10FA070
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Transcript of Radio Communications: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On December 10, 2009, approximately 2221 Central Standard Time, N7881Y, a Piper PA-30 multi-engine airplane, was destroyed when it collided with the water in Laguna Madre about 1.6 miles east of the Charles R. Johnson Airport (T05), Port Mansfield, Texas. The commercial rated pilot and the passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot. The flight originated from a private airport in Sun Ray, Texas, about 1815, and was destined for Port Mansfield. No flight plan was originally filed; however, the pilot filed an instrument flight rules flight plan while en route. Night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. A review of air traffic control communications revealed that the pilot was talking to Valley Approach control. When the pilot initially checked on, he was at an altitude of 6,500 feet and descending to 6,000 feet. A controller informed the pilot that there was no weather information available at Port Mansfield, but the airport in Harlingen (23 miles southwest of Port Mansfield) was reporting a ceiling of 1,000 foot overcast, visibility 9 miles, and an altimeter setting of 30.11 inches of Mercury. The controller asked the pilot what "approach" he wanted to attempt, and the pilot responded that there were no instrument approaches available at Port Mansfield. The controller concurred and reiterated again that no weather information was available for Port Mansfield Airport. The pilot stated that he had obtained weather infor
Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance with the water while on approach (VFR) to land.
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Browse: Texas · 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.
