Piper PA28R accident near Gainesville, GA
On April 28, 2018, a Piper PA28R (airplane) was involved in an accident near Gainesville, GA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- April 28, 2018
- Place
- Gainesville, GA
- Aircraft
- Piper PA28R · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 2 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 34.250°N, 83.973°W
- NTSB ID
- 20180428X83650
Official records · ERA18FA137
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On April 28, 2018, about 1715 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28R-200, N4363F, was substantially damaged when it struck a vehicle during a forced landing to a highway near Gainesville, Georgia. The flight instructor was fatally injured; the commercial pilot and passenger were seriously injured. The two people in the vehicle were not injured. The airplane was registered to and was being operated by the Flight School of Gwinnett as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local flight, which departed Gwinnett County Airport–Briscoe Field (LZU), Lawrenceville, Georgia, about 1615. According to the commercial pilot, who was seated in the front left seat, the purpose of the flight was to practice maneuvers for a single-engine add-on rating to his commercial certificate. After they departed, they flew to the flight school's practice area, which was over Lake Lanier, before returning to the airport to practice landings and traffic pattern work. While returning to the airport in level flight between 3,500 and 5,000 ft mean sea level (msl), the commercial pilot heard a loud bang from the engine and saw the cowling expand simultaneously. Engine oil then sprayed over the entire windscreen and obstructed their view. The engine was producing some power, but the airplane was unable to maintain altitude. The flight instructor, seated in the front right seat, took control of the airplane and made two descending 360° turns over the highway and prepared to land to
Probable cause
A partial loss of engine power due to inadequate thru-bolt and stud preload tension by undetermined maintenance personnel, which resulted in fretting between the engine crankcase halves, and the subsequent separation of the No. 2 cylinder due to the fatigue failure of the No. 2 cylinder stud/thru bolts.
More accidents in GA
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Browse: Georgia · 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.
