National Transportation Safety Board

Aviation Accident Preliminary Report

Location: Amagansett, NY Accident Number: ERA18LA157

Date & Time: 06/02/2018, 1433 EDT Registration: N41173
Aircraft: PIPER PA 31 Injuries: 4 Fatal
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General Aviation - Personal

On June 2, 2018, about 1433 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-31-350 (Navajo), N41173, was
destroyed when it impacted the Atlantic Ocean near Indian Wells Beach, Amagansett, New
York. The commercial pilot and three passengers were fatally injured. Visual meteorological
conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the flight that originated from Newport
State Airport (UUU), Newport, Rhode Island, destined for East Hampton Airport (HTO), East
Hampton, New York. The personal flight was conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code
of Federal Regulations Part 91.

A pilot in another airplane, a Bonanza, was flying with the accident airplane. He stated that the
two airplanes were in UUU to pick up a relative of the passengers flying in the Navajo and then
fly to HTO. The relative boarded the Bonanza and both airplanes we utilized to transport her
belongings. He further stated that he and the accident pilot talked for about 1 hour regarding
the weather between them and the destination airport. They planned to both fly south to the
Sandy Point VOR on Block Island, Rhode Island and then turn west and follow the shoreline to
HTO. They looked at the weather online. It was visual flight rules (VFR) to the destination. The
Bonanza departed first, and the Navajo was going to follow. After takeoff the Bonanza
contacted Providence air traffic control (ATC) and was informed that there was a "bad storm"
near HTO and it was moving slowly. The Bonanza pilot told ATC that he wanted to fly farther
south over the ocean and try to miss the approaching storm, so he could stay VFR. He did not
know what happened to the Navajo as he did not hear the accident pilot communicate on the
radio. The Bonanza pilot stated he conducted the flight at 1,000 ft above ground level (agl) and
slowed down due to turbulence, but landed at HTO under VFR conditions.

Radar data provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) depicted the Navajo in
front of the Bonanza by 5 miles over the Atlantic Ocean and south of HTO. The radar data
revealed that the Navajo was at 432 ft agl about 6 miles from the airport. It climbed to 512 ft
and then descended to 152 ft. The airplane's radar target momentarily disappeared and then
reappeared and climbed to 532 ft before descending back to 152 ft. The airplane's last radar
target indicated 325 ft about 2 miles south of Indian Wells Beach.

The wreckage was located about 1 mile south of the Indian Wells Beach in 50 ft of water and
was subsequently recovered. Examination of the wreckage was performed about 2 weeks after

Page 1 of 3 ERA18LA157
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when
the final report has been completed.
the accident by a National Transportation Safety Board investigator. The fuselage was impact
damaged, fractured, and separated into multiple pieces. The cabin roof was separated into a
portion extending from the windows on the left side around to the right-wing attachment and
extending from the aft baggage compartment forward to about the middle of the cabin. There
was another portion of the cabin roof extending from about the middle of the cabin forward to
the windshield and from the windows on the left side around to the windows on the right side.

The left and right wings were both separated from the fuselage at the wing root and were
fragmented. One fuel cell was recovered on the left wing.

The left and right engine remained partially attached to the airframe through the motor
mounts. The oil sump was fractured and corroded on both engines. The No. 1 cylinder was
impact damaged on both engines. The spark plugs were removed, and the engines were rotated
by turning the propeller flange. Continuity to the rear gears and to the valve train was
confirmed. Compression and suction were confirmed through thumb compression. The piston,
valves and cylinders were examined using a lighted borescope. No anomalies were noted except
corrosion and sand consistent with saltwater immersion.

Both left and right propellers were fractured from their respective engine crankshaft mounting
flanges and exhibited corrosion consistent with immersion in saltwater. Both propeller spinner
domes were torn from the propeller assemblies and were not recovered. All four blades of the
left and right propellers were bent aft in varying degrees and twisted toward low pitch.

The seven seat, low-wing airplane, was manufactured in 1984. It was powered by two
Lycoming TIO-540-J2B, 350-horsepower engines, equipped with four bladed Hartzell
propellers. The airplane was equipped with a Garmin MX20 MFD and a Garmin 530 GPS, both
capable of displaying on board weather. The last annual inspection was completed on
November 3, 2017. At the time of the accident, the airframe total time was 5776.6 hours.. The
left engine had 359.5 hours since major overhaul and the right engine had 535.7 hours since
major overhaul. The airplane had flown 39 hours since the annual inspection.

The pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land, multi-
engine land and instrument airplane. He also held a flight instructor certificate. His most
recent FAA second-class medical certificate was issued May 30, 2017. At the time of the
medical examination, the pilot reported 3,000 total hours of flight experience.

At 1335, the weather recorded at HTO, included: scattered clouds at 1,300 ft, wind calm,
temperature 22°C, dew point 20°C, and an altimeter setting of 29.76 inches of mercury.

Review of weather radar revealed that a low-pressure system associated with a frontal wave
over Long Island Sound with a cold front stretching westward over Long Island into central
New Jersey and a warm front turning back to a cold front eastward. The models also indicated
scattered thunderstorms over the area of HTO.

The engine and airframe were retained for further examination.

Page 2 of 3 ERA18LA157
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when
the final report has been completed.
Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information
Aircraft Make: PIPER Registration: N41173
Model/Series: PA 31 350 Aircraft Category: Airplane
Amateur Built: No
Operator: On file Operating Certificate(s) On-demand Air Taxi (135)
Held:

Meteorological Information and Flight Plan

Conditions at Accident Site: Instrument Conditions Condition of Light: Day
Observation Facility, Elevation: KHTO, 56 ft msl Observation Time: 1835 UTC
Distance from Accident Site: 25 Nautical Miles Temperature/Dew Point: 22°C / 20°C
Lowest Cloud Condition: Scattered / 1300 ft agl Wind Speed/Gusts, Direction: Calm / ,
Lowest Ceiling: Overcast / 2600 ft agl Visibility: 7 Miles
Altimeter Setting: 29.76 inches Hg Type of Flight Plan Filed: None
Departure Point: NEWPORT, RI (UUU) Destination: EAST HAMPTON, NY
(HTO)

Wreckage and Impact Information

Crew Injuries: 1 Fatal Aircraft Damage: Destroyed
Passenger Injuries: 3 Fatal Aircraft Fire: None
Ground Injuries: N/A Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 4 Fatal Latitude, Longitude: 40.571944, -72.074722 (est)
Administrative Information
Investigator In Charge (IIC): Daniel P Boggs
Additional Participating Persons: Mathew Cady; FAA FSDO; Farmingdale, NY
Jon Hirsch; Piper; Wichita, KS
Mike Childers; Lycoming Engines; Atlanta, GA
Les Doud; Hartzell Propeller; Piqua, OH
Note: The NTSB did not travel to the scene of this accident.

Page 3 of 3 ERA18LA157
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when
the final report has been completed.