Piper PA46 accident near Shreveport, LA

On February 28, 2019, a Piper PA46 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Shreveport, LA. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.

Date

February 28, 2019

Place

Shreveport, LA

Aircraft

Piper PA46 · Airplane

Injuries

2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor

Damage

Substantial

Position

32.549°N, 93.761°W

NTSB ID

20190228X04828

Official records · CEN19FA088

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

Air traffic control records

• Radio Commuications with Tower - Excerpt of FAA Accident Package: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
• Radio Communications with Approach: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
• Air Traffic Control Flight Path Data - Summary: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov

NTSB summary

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn February 28, 2019, about 1040 central standard time, a Piper PA46-350P airplane, N428CD, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Shreveport Downtown Airport (DTN), Shreveport, Louisiana. The private pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot and passenger were flying to Vernon, Texas, for a hunting trip. According to air traffic control (ATC) information, the airplane departed runway 32 about 1037. After climbing to 600 ft mean sea level (msl), the pilot was instructed to turn left to a heading of 270° and climb to 12,000 ft msl. According to recorded weather information, the sky condition was overcast clouds at 600 ft above ground level (agl). Radar data indicated the airplane entered a climbing left turn that continued beyond the assigned heading of 270°. The controller issued a revised heading of 140°, and the pilot responded "standby." After climbing to 1,400 ft msl, the airplane's altitude and airspeed began to fluctuate as it continued in a tightening left spiral (see figure 1). About 35 seconds after transmitting "standby," the pilot stated, "we're in trouble up here." The airplane subsequently made a decelerating right turn then rapidly descended. The last ATC data recorded for the flight indicated a groundspeed of 31 knots at 575 ft msl. Onboard data showed the airplane's altitude, vertical velocity, and speed oscillated several times and the turn rate increased during the last minute of the flight. From 10:39:25 to 10

Probable cause

The pilot's conduct of a departure into instrument meteorological conditions (IMC), which resulted in spatial disorientation and subsequent loss of airplane control. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's poor instrument flying skills and his decision to depart into IMC with an unresolved autopilot maintenance issue.

More accidents in LA

• Sikorsky S-76C, Jan 4, 2009
• Cessna 411A, May 8, 1986
• Piper PA 31T, Dec 28, 2019
• Beech E90, Jun 24, 2005
• Bell 206L-3, May 10, 1994

Browse: Louisiana · Piper aircraft

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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.