NTSB BFO88FA063 — 1988-07-02 · FRIENDLY, Maryland, United States

N1021P has since been reassigned. It is now registered to a different aircraft (CESSNA T182T, built 2005), which was not involved in this event.

Aircraft involved

N1021P Piper PA-23 None

Factual narrative

SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF AT AN ALTITUDE OF 200 FT AGL, A POWER LOSS WAS EXPERIENCED ON THE LEFT ENGINE. ACCORDING TO THE PLT, WHEN THE THROTTLE WAS RETARDED TO VERIFY THE ENGINE FAILURE, THE ENGINE SEEMED TO 'COME BACK TO LIFE'. THE THROTTLE WAS ADVANCED AND ONCE AGAIN A LOSS OF POWER WAS EXPERIENCED. UNABLE TO GAIN ENOUGH ALTITUDE TO CLEAR THE SURROUNDING TERRAIN AND RETURN TO THE AIRPORT, THE PLT ELECTED TO MAKE A GEAR-UP FORCED LANDING IN A FIELD. THE AIRPLANE SLID FOR 333 FT BEFORE COMING TO REST. INSPECTION OF THE AIRPLANE, ENGINE AND ENGINE COMPONENTS FAILED TO REVEAL ANY MECHANICAL FAILURE/MALFUNCTION. THE ONLY DISCREPANCY FOUND WERE SEVERAL PIECES OF A SILICON RUBBER TYPE MATERIAL INSIDE THE LEFT MAIN FUEL TANK NEAR THE FUEL PICK-UP LINE SCREEN. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1988_BFO88FA063.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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