Piper PA-61 Aerostar (Ted Smith 601)

Scott R. Shaw

Doobie Air

Raul Ignacion Posada

While approaching Durango Airport on a flight from Celaya, the twin engine aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed in an open field located near the village of Ceballos, about 16 km northwest of the Durango Intl Airport. The burned wreckage was found near the Peña del Aguila Dam. Both occupants were killed.

Tiadaghton Aviation

On April 23, 2020, at 2139 mountain daylight time (MDT), radar contact was lost with a Piper Aerostar 601X, N601X. The airplane was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Craig, Colorado. The uncertificated (student rated) pilot sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The airplane was not equipped with automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B), which was required for operations in airspace that included class E airspace at or above 10,000 ft. The flight had not been operating on a flight plan and had no communications with air traffic control as required when it operated in class A airspace above 18,000 ft. Aircraft maintenance logbooks showed that the airplane received it last regulatory annual inspection dated November 21, 2019, and its last altimeter inspection, up to 30,000 ft, was dated June 27, 2014. Radar track data indicated that N601X departed Jersey Shore Airport (P96), Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania, about 1119 MDT, flying westbound at a cruise altitude of about 3,500 feet msl and had an average ground speed of about 180 - 190 kts until stopping at Findlay Airport (FDY), Findlay, Ohio, about 1251 MDT. Track data indicates N601X departed FDY about 1337 MDT, flying westbound at an altitude of about 3,500 ft, climbed once to about 5,500 ft, then descended to about 3,500 ft until later climbing to a cruise altitude of between 8,500-9,500 ft before descending into and landing at Red Oak Municipal Airport (RDK), Red Oak, Iowa, about 1618 MDT. Track data indicates N601X likely departed RDK about 1708 MDT, continuing westbound again, climbing to a maximum cruise altitude of about 9,500 ft, then descended and landed at Northern Colorado Regional Airport (FNL), Ft Collins/Loveland, Colorado, about 1949 MDT. A line service technician employed by a fixed base operator (FBO) at FNL stated that he was sitting in the line shack when he saw N601X taxi from the runway. He said the airplane's right engine was not running, and the pilot was trying to start it. The engine did not restart, and the airplane continued to taxi to the ramp. He asked the pilot if everything was "okay," and the pilot said, "yeah cut it a little close on fuel." He said the airplane was leaning "quite a bit" toward the right, which he attributed to a fuel imbalance. The line service technician said there was "a lot" of fuel staining under the right wing and on top of the wing. He did not look at the left wing and did not know if the left wing had fuel stains. He said he looked in the airplane and did not see it equipped with ADS-B; he said that he did not know how the pilot was going to fly over the mountains. He said the airplane was equipped with a panel mounted Garmin 430 and a transponder with round knobs. He said he saw an oxygen tank in the airplane and did not know the amount of oxygen that was present in the tank. The line service technician said the airplane did not have a pressurization system. The line service technician said he topped of all three fuel tanks: left wing, right wing and fuselage tank. He said during fueling of left tank, he had to push up the right wing up because it was leaning downward. The pilot told him to make sure that the fuel tank cap on the fuselage was on tight because "the thing leaks." The line service technician said he double checked the fuselage fuel tank cap, and it was on "tight." The line service technician said the engines sounded fine except for the pilot running out of fuel during the after-landing taxi. He did not think the airplane was in "very good" condition. A customer service representative at the FBO stated the pilot told her he purchased the airplane in New York and was "going to try to get over the mountains." The pilot said he flew on a commercial flight from California and on the same day he purchased the airplane. He said he had to go over the mountains and through Utah and was destined to California. She said the pilot was "really tired" and did not have cash to buy Red Bull, so she made him coffee. The pilot told her that he left New York later than he wanted too because he was talking with the former airplane owner. He told her the airplane was his fifth airplane that he owned. Radar track data indicates N601X departed FNL about 2037 MDT turning westbound, climbing through about 12,000 ft, and made a left, almost 360° turn, continuing to climb throughout the turn, then flying west/southwest bound and reaching about 16,000 ft. The airplane continued west/southwest for a little over 40 miles climbing again and reaching about 22,000 ft, then turning right about 90° flying northbound, momentarily, before turning left and heading west/northwest and descending to about 20,000 ft, then back up again to about 22,000 ft, briefly, then back down to about 20,000 ft. The airplane then turned left to the southwest, then southbound, entering erratic flight climbing to over 23,000 ft, momentarily, before beginning to descend, entering a tight looping turn to the left and losing altitude rapidly, then showing a west/northwest heading in the final segment before track data was lost at about 2139 MDT. An alert notice was issued, and the airplane wreckage was located by the Colorado State Highway Patrol on April 24, 2020, about 0336 MDT, about 15 miles west of Craig, Colorado.

LKJ Properties

On approach to Springfield-Abraham Lincoln, the pilot reported trouble with his instruments when the airplane descended and crashed left wing first in a garden located in Sangamon County, about 7 miles southeast of the airport, bursting into flames. The aircraft was destroyed and all three occupants were killed, among them former Springfield Mayor Frank Edwards.

Robert T. Knight Sr.

The mechanic who maintained the airplane reported that, on the morning of the accident, the right engine would not start due to water contamination in the fuel system. The commercial pilot and mechanic purged the fuel tanks, flushed the fuel system, and cleaned the left engine fuel injector nozzles. After the maintenance work, they completed engine ground runs for each engine with no anomalies noted. Subsequently, the pilot ordered new fuel from the local fixed-based operator to complete a maintenance test flight. The pilot stated that he completed a preflight inspection, followed by engine run-ups for each engine with no anomalies noted and then departed with one passenger onboard. Immediately after takeoff, the right engine stopped producing full power, and the airplane would not maintain altitude. No remaining runway was left to land, so the pilot conducted a forced landing to a field about 1 mile from the runway; the airplane landed hard and came to rest upright. Postaccident examination revealed no water contamination in the engines. Examination of the airplane revealed numerous instances of improper and inadequate maintenance of the engines and fuel system. The fuel system contained corrosion debris, and minimal fuel was found in the lines to the fuel servo. Although maintenance was conducted on the airplane on the morning of the accident, the right engine fuel injectors nozzles were not removed during the maintenance procedures; therefore, it is likely that the fuel flow volume was not measured. It is likely that the corrosion debris in the fuel system resulted when the water was recently purged from the fuel system. The contaminants were likely knocked loose during the subsequent engine runs and attempted takeoff, which subsequently blocked the fuel lines and starved the right engine of available fuel.

Carman W. Rollo

Before departing on the flight, the private pilot, who did not hold a current medical certificate, fueled the multiengine airplane and was seen shortly thereafter attempting to repair a fuel leak of unknown origin. The pilot did not hold a mechanic certificate and review of the maintenance logbooks revealed that the most recent annual inspection was completed 2 years before the accident. After performing undetermined maintenance to the airplane, the pilot reported to a witness that he had fixed the fuel leak. The pilot then taxied to the runway for takeoff. Witnesses reported that a large fuel stain was present on the ramp where the airplane had been parked; however, the amount of fuel that leaked from the airplane could not be determined. The pilot aborted the first takeoff shortly after becoming airborne. Although he did not state why he aborted the takeoff, he told the tower controller that he did not need assistance; shortly thereafter, he requested and was cleared for a second takeoff. During the initial climb, the pilot declared an emergency and was cleared to land on any runway. Witnesses reported that the airplane was between 400 ft and 800 ft above the ground in a left bank and appeared to be turning back to land on an intersecting runway. They thought the airplane was going to make it back to the runway, but the airplane's bank angle increased past 90° and the nose suddenly dropped; the airplane subsequently impacted terrain. One of the pilots likened the maneuver to a stall/spin, Vmc roll, or snap roll. Examination of the flight controls and engines did not reveal any anomalies that would have prevented normal operation. The position of the fuel valves was consistent with the fuel being shut off to the left engine. The fuel valves, with the exception of the left main valve, functioned when power was applied. The left main valve was intact, but the motor was found to operate intermittently. The amount of fuel found in the left engine injection servo was less than that in the right engine; however, the cylinder head temperatures and exhaust gas temperatures were consistent between both engines for the duration of the flight, and whether or to what extent the left engine may have experienced a loss of power could not be determined. The available evidence was insufficient to determine why the pilot declared an emergency and elected to return to the airport; however, the airplane's increased left bank and nose-down attitude just before impact is consistent with a loss of control.

Kurt Heitmeier

The commercial pilot stated that, during the takeoff roll, the airplane swerved to the right, and he corrected to the left and aborted the takeoff; however, the airplane departed the left side of the runway and collided with an embankment. At the time of the accident, a quartering tailwind was present. The pilot had no previous experience in the accident airplane make and model or in any other multiengine airplane equipped with engines capable of producing 300 horsepower. During a postaccident conversation with a mechanic, the pilot stated that the airplane "got away from him" during the attempted takeoff. Because a postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal any evidence of a preimpact mechanical malfunction or failure of the airplane's flight controls or nosewheel steering system that would have precluded normal operation and the pilot did not have any previous experience operating this make and model of airplane, it is likely that the pilot lost directional control during takeoff with a quartering tailwind.

Ian McMahon

The pilot reported that the purpose of the flight was to reposition the airplane to another airport for refuel. During preflight, he reported that the airplane's two fuel gauges read "low," but the supplemental electronic fuel totalizer displayed 55 total gallons. He further reported that it is not feasible to visual check the fuel quantity, because the fueling ports are located near the wingtips and the fuel quantity cannot be measured with any "external measuring device." According to the pilot, his planned flight was 20 minutes and the fuel quantity, as indicated by the fuel totalizer, was sufficient. The pilot reported that about 12 nautical miles from the destination airport, both engines began to "surge" and subsequently lost power. During the forced landing, the pilot deviated to land in grass between a highway, the airplane touched down hard, and the landing gear collapsed. The fuselage and both wings sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported in the National Transportation Safety Board Pilot/ Operator Aircraft Accident Report that there was a "disparity" between the actual fuel quantity and the fuel quantity set in the electronic fuel totalizer. He further reported that a few days before the accident, he set the total fuel totalizer quantity to full after refueling, but in hindsight, he did not believe the fuel tanks were actually full because the wings may not have been level during the fueling. The "Preflight" chapter within the operating manual for the fuel totalizer in part states: "Digiflo-L is a fuel flow measuring system and NOT a quantity-sensing device. A visual inspection and positive determination of the usable fuel in the fuel tanks is a necessity. Therefore, it is imperative that the determined available usable fuel be manually entered into the system."