Piper PA28 accident near Santee, CA

On September 3, 2015, a Piper PA28 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Santee, CA. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.

Date

September 3, 2015

Place

Santee, CA

Aircraft

Piper PA28 · Airplane

Injuries

2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Substantial

Position

32.829°N, 116.989°W

NTSB ID

20150903X33216

Official records · WPR15FA256

• Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation

Air traffic control records

• Air Traffic Control Memo (NTSB): Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHT On September 3, 2015, about 0917 Pacific daylight time, a Piper PA-28-161 airplane, N8441B, impacted a residential area in Santee, California, shortly after takeoff from Gillespie Field Airport (SEE), San Diego/El Cajon, California. The flight instructor and student pilot were fatally injured, and the airplane was substantially damaged. The instructional flight was operated by Golden State Flying Club, El Cajon, California, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for the local flight. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), air traffic tower personnel at SEE reported that the airplane had been conducting touch-and-go takeoffs and landings on runway 27R. The controller stated that after completion of the second touch-and-go, he expected that the airplane would turn right onto the crosswind leg of the traffic pattern. However, the airplane turned left and descended rapidly toward terrain west of the field. There were no mayday calls received from the accident airplane. A witness in a vehicle watched the airplane take off and follow a normal climb path. Then he saw the left-wing dip, which initially he thought was a normal traffic pattern turn. He realized that the left wing continued to dip "more severely than normal," and the left bank increased as the airplane flew toward an open field at the west end of the runway. As the airplane continued in a tight left turn, it lost altitude "very quickly," and subsequently impacted the ground. A witne

Probable cause

The pilots' failure to maintain airplane control following a partial loss of engine power after takeoff, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall. Contributing to the accident was the partial loss of engine power due to a failure of the right magneto.

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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.