Piper PA46 accident near McCook, NE
On October 30, 2023, a Piper PA46 (airplane) was involved in an accident near McCook, NE. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- October 30, 2023
- Place
- McCook, NE
- Aircraft
- Piper PA46 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 40.199°N, 100.606°W
- NTSB ID
- 20231030193326
Official records · CEN24FA028
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn October 30, 2023, about 1201 central daylight time, a Piper PA 46-350P, N510KC, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near McCook, Nebraska. The pilot was fatally injured. The passenger was seriously injured. The airplane operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot and passenger were departing the airport to return to Louisiana following a hunting trip. The passenger was seated in an aft-facing seat in the airplane. Two dogs were in forward-facing seats and the passenger was holding on to another dog that was seated on the floor. He recalled that when the airplane was about 100 ft above ground level, there was a “hard dip to the left.” He was on a headset and reported that the pilot did not say anything. He did not hear any unusual engine noises. Witnesses saw the airplane flying to the southwest; they noted that although it was in a nose-high attitude, it was losing altitude. Witnesses saw the nose of the airplane drop as the airplane rolled left and collided with trees. There was no ADS-B data on file with the FAA. The flight’s destination was not known; however, a pilot logbook entry from a previous trip to McCook showed the pilot had flown to Oakley Municipal Airport, Oakley, Kansas, before returning to Shreveport, Louisiana. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONThe pilot’s logbook showed that the pilot had completed JetProp DLX ground school and flight training at the JetProp Factory on February 3, 2017. His most recent biennial flight review was completed in the accident airplane 8 days before the a
Probable cause
The pilot exceeded the airplane’s critical angle of attack during the initial climb, resulting in an aerodynamic stall from which he could not recover. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s decision to take off with the airplane well above its maximum gross weight and outside of its aft center of gravity limit, as well as a gradual reduction in engine power for undetermined reasons.
More accidents in NE
- Piper PA-32R-300, Oct 16, 1993
- Piper PA-31, Apr 14, 1986
- Raytheon Aircraft Company 58, Jan 11, 2013
- Cessna 210H, Jan 19, 1986
- Beech C35, Jun 17, 1984
Browse: Nebraska · 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.
