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| Date: | Thursday 11 August 2022 |
| Time: | 18:05 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-32-301 Saratoga |
| Owner/operator: | Skyhawk Associates LLC |
| Registration: | N720RP |
| MSN: | 32-8006027 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1980 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 4516 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Metz, WV -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Washington-Daviess County Airport, IN (KDCY) |
| Deck Airport, PA (9D4) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On August 11, 2022, about 1805 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA32-301, N720RP, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Metz, West Virginia. The private pilot and two passengers were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of FederalRegulations Part 91 personal flight.
The non-instrument-rated pilot was in cruise flight when he advised the air traffic controller that he was looking at his cockpit weather radar display and requested a deviation between what he described as a gap between radar echoes. The airplane subsequently transitioned through echoes consistent with areas of light, moderate, heavy, and then extreme precipitation before track data depicted a steep, descending right turn that continued until contact with the airplane was lost in the vicinity of the accident site.
The damage to the airplane and the distribution of the wreckage, which was spread over a distance of 0.8 miles, were consistent with an in-flight break-up. Examination of the wreckage revealed fracture surfaces consistent with overstress failure, and no evidence of preimpact mechanical anomalies that would have prevented normal operation of the airplane.
The extent of the pilot’s preflight weather planning activities could not be determined, as there was no record of him obtaining weather information from an access-controlled source. Based on his communications with air traffic control, the pilot was aware of the convective activity along his route of flight and was likely using his cockpit Next Generation Radar (NEXRAD) weather display for tactical weather avoidance decisions, and not accounting for the latencies inherent to the processes used to create and deliver this imagery to an inflight display.
Probable Cause: The non-instrument-rated pilot’s intentional visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions based on latent weather information, which resulted in the airplane entering extreme precipitation, a loss of aircraft control, and in-flight break-up.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://www.wvva.com/2022/08/11/plane-crashes-marion-county-with-reports-casualties/
https://wvmetronews.com/2022/08/11/officials-confirm-3-deaths-in-marion-county-plane-crash/
https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=105724
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N720RP/history/20220811/1942Z/KDCY/L%2039.62423%20-80.38653
https://globe.adsbexchange.com/?icao=a9a511&lat=39.263&lon=-82.432&zoom=7.0&showTrace=2022-08-11&leg=2
https://registry.faa.gov/AircraftInquiry/Search/NNumberResult?nNumberTxt=N720RP
https://www.airliners.net/photo/Untitled/Piper-PA-32-301-Saratoga/2783788/L (photo)
Location
Images:
Photo: NTSB
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 12-Aug-2022 03:21 | Geno | Added |
| 12-Aug-2022 03:54 | Geno | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source] |
| 12-Aug-2022 11:40 | RobertMB | Updated [Registration, Location, Phase, Nature, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 12-Aug-2022 13:12 | johnwg | Updated [Time, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 12-Aug-2022 13:12 | johnwg | Updated [Category] |
| 12-Aug-2022 13:13 | johnwg | Updated [Departure airport] |
| 25-Aug-2022 21:30 | Captain Adam | Updated [Time, Location, Source, Narrative, Category] |
| 13-Jun-2024 15:37 | Captain Adam | Updated [Aircraft type, Source, Narrative, Accident report, Photo] |
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