ERA18LA102

Factual narrative

On March 1, 2018, about 1051 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-32-300 airplane, N54476, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Pompano Beach, Florida. The private pilot and passenger were not injured. The flight was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. During departure, while climbing through 800 ft mean sea level (msl), the pilot observed the engine manifold pressure falling and stated that it “sounded irregular.” The pilot-rated passenger told the pilot to “turn back,” after which the pilot informed air traffic control that they needed to return and land. The controller issued a clearance to land on runway 28. The pilot estimated that when the airplane touched down, the groundspeed was high and there was a “substantial” quartering tailwind. Both the pilot and passenger reported that, during landing, the engine appeared to be developing full power, the throttle was unresponsive, and they were unable to reduce power. After touching down and bouncing several times, the pilot pulled the mixture to the idle/cut off position, but when there was not an immediate response, he attempted to take off again because the airplane was nearing the end of the runway. After applying full power and full-rich mixture, the airplane lifted off. The pilot entered an immediate turn to the right to stay over the airport and away from a hangar. The airplane climbed briefly, then started to descend as it continued banking to the right, then impacted the ground in front of a hangar about 1,000 ft northwest of the departure end of runway 28. The airplane skidded across the pavement and impacted two fences before coming to rest upright. Both the tower controller who witnessed the landing and the pilot-rated passenger reported that the approach speed was high, and they may have touched down late. The controller further stated the touchdown was in the last third of the runway. Examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector revealed that the outboard sections of both wings sheared off, the landing gear separated, and the engine partially separated from the firewall. Examination of the engine revealed no anomalies. The pilot reported that, shortly after takeoff while climbing through 800 ft mean sea level (msl), the engine manifold pressure began to drop, and the engine “sounded irregular.” The pilot initiated a return to the airport and requested to land. The pilot and pilot-rated passenger reported that the engine did not respond when the throttle was reduced during the landing approach. The airplane continued toward the runway at high speed and touched down within the last third of the runway surface, where it bounced several times. The pilot first pulled the mixture control to idle/cut off, but when the engine did not respond, richened the mixture, applied full throttle, and initiated an aborted landing. The airplane became airborne, entered a right bank, and began to descend before impacting the ramp near a hangar, resulting in substantial damage. The wind conditions at the time of the accident were consistent with a quartering tailwind of about 8 knots for the landing runway. Examination of the engine revealed no anomalies, and the reasons for the initial loss of manifold pressure could not be determined based on the available information. However, the circumstances of the accident are consistent with the pilot’s exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack after the airplane became airborne, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall, loss of control, and impact with the ramp. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

• — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Tailwind-Effect on equipment
• — Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
• — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained
• — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Angle of attack-Not attained/maintained
• — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Descent/approach/glide path-Not attained/maintained
• — Aircraft-Aircraft power plant-(general)-(general)-Unknown/Not determined