Piper PA31T accident near Atlantic Ocean, AO
On October 25, 2018, a Piper PA31T (airplane) was involved in an accident near Atlantic Ocean, AO. 5 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- October 25, 2018
- Place
- Atlantic Ocean, AO
- Aircraft
- Piper PA31T · Airplane
- Injuries
- 5 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 37.635°N, 72.861°W
- NTSB ID
- 20181025X55256
Official records · ERA19LA026
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Transcribed Excerpts from ATC Recordings: Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn October 25, 2018, about 1119 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-31T, N555PM, was presumed to have impacted the Atlantic Ocean about 100 miles southeast of Charleston, South Carolina. The two pilots and three passengers were not found and presumed fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The family of the pilot/owner reported that the airplane departed from its home base, a private runway in Andrews, South Carolina, destined for Governors Harbour Airport (MYEM), Governors Harbour, Bahamas. Radar and air traffic control data provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) showed the airplane departed the private runway toward the southeast about 1047. The airplane crossed over the coastline and began a climb to an assigned altitude of 25,000 ft. The climb rate was consistent at 500 ft per minute (fpm), and the airplane remained on course flying toward the assigned airspace fix. When the airplane was about 12 miles from the fix (about 95 miles southeast of Charleston Air Force Base/International Airport (CHS), Charleston, South Carolina), while climbing through 24,300 ft, the pilot made a garbled radio transmission (that had a considerably increased background noise level) that included the word "emergency". The pilot of another airplane on the same frequency relayed that he heard N555PM say that he was diverting to CHS. At the time of the transmission, the airplane had drifted slightly to the right (less than 1/4 mile) of course. The airplane then began a descent about 1,000 fpm and
Probable cause
An in-flight loss of control, which resulted in an impact with water, for reasons that could not be determined because the airplane was not recovered.
More accidents in AO
- Beech 200, Jan 19, 2008
- Cessna 210K, Aug 19, 2011
- Boeing 737-200, Jun 28, 2007
- Piper PA-23-250, Apr 21, 2007
- Piper PA-32RT-300, Jul 20, 2002
Browse: United States · 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.
