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| Date: | Tuesday 2 August 2022 |
| Time: | 10:30 |
| Type: |  Ted Smith Aerostar 600 |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N9784Q |
| MSN: | 60-0416-143 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 11197 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near South Haven Area Regional Airport (KLWA), South Haven, MI -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | South Haven Area Regional Airport, MI (KLWA) |
| South Haven Area Regional Airport, MI (KLWA) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On August 2, 2022, about 1030 eastern daylight time, a Smith Aerostar 600, N9784Q, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near South Haven Area Regional Airport (LWA), South Haven, Michigan. The air transport pilot and commercial pilot were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.
A friend of the copilot reported this was the multiengine airplane’s first flight since the (singleengine-rated) copilot purchased it five years before the accident. He stated that the purpose of the flight was to conduct touch-and-go landings. Another (multiengine-rated) pilot was flying in the left seat, with the copilot flying in the right seat. On the day of the accident, when the friend arrived at the airport, he noticed that the airplane was not in the traffic pattern. After a few hours, he became concerned and reported the airplane missing to local authorities, and it was found the next morning in a heavily wooded area about one mile away from the airport. There were no witnesses to the accident.
Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed that the airplane’s left propeller displayed signatures indicative of low rotational speed at impact, suggesting that the airplane’s left engine may have lost at least partial power. The right propeller showed signatures consistent with high rotational speed/power settings at the time of impact. Examination of the left engine’s fuel servo revealed that it was heavily contaminated with sediment and that the fuel pump had weak suction and compression. Either or both of these conditions could have reduced the left engine’s performance during the flight.
Additionally, the airplane was found with its wing flaps extended, the landing gear not retracted, and the left engine’s propeller was not feathered. A representative from the airplane’s type certificate holder stated that, depending on the airplane’s takeoff weight, it generally could not maintain level flight during an engine-out condition unless the flaps and landing gear were up and the failed engine’s propeller was feathered.
While there were no witnesses to the accident or other recorded data to suggest what flight regime the airplane was in when the loss of engine power occurred, given the stated purpose of the flight and the findings of the postaccident examination of the wreckage, it is likely that, while maneuvering the airplane in the airport traffic pattern, the airplane’s left engine lost power and the airplane subsequently impacted trees and terrain. Given the configuration of the wing flaps and landing gear and the unfeathered position of the left propeller, it is likely that the airplane’s single-engine performance was degraded.
Probable Cause: A loss of power to the left engine due to contamination of the fuel system. Contributing to the accident was the pilots’ failure to properly configure the airplane for flight with one engine inoperative.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://michigannewstime.com/pd-2-killed-in-plane-crash-near-south-haven/79382/
https://www.wsjm.com/2022/08/03/plane-crashes-near-south-haven-regional-airport/
https://nbc25news.com/newsletter-daily/plane-crash-south-haven-pilots-airplane-missing-federal-aviation-administration-michigan-state-police-united-states-air-force-airport-chicago
https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2022/08/2-dead-in-south-haven-plane-crash.html
https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/south-mi/van-buren/officials-in-south-haven-searching-for-missing-plane
https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=105647
https://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/Search/NNumberResult?nNumberTxt=9784Q
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 1 February 1986 | N9784Q | Top Flight Air Serivce | 0 | Folkston, GA | |
min |
Location
Images:
Photo: NTSB
Media:
#NEW: The South Haven Fire Department is at the scene of a plane crash.
— Lauren Kummer (@LaurenKummerTV) August 3, 2022
Authorities say it happened sometime Tuesday morning after taking off from the South Haven Regional Airport.
Crews are going to the crash site located in a wooded area off of 73rd & 12th Ave. @FOX17 pic.twitter.com/mFVfyegXlC
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 03-Aug-2022 13:35 | gerard57 | Added |
| 03-Aug-2022 13:56 | gerard57 | Updated [Total fatalities, Total occupants, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 03-Aug-2022 14:03 | gerard57 | Updated [Aircraft type, Source, ] |
| 03-Aug-2022 14:36 | harro | Updated [Time, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Source, ] |
| 03-Aug-2022 14:42 | harro | Updated [Aircraft type, Narrative, ] |
| 03-Aug-2022 14:44 | harro | Updated [Narrative, Category, ] |
| 03-Aug-2022 15:18 | RobertMB | Updated [Aircraft type, Location, Source, Embed code, Narrative, ] |
| 03-Aug-2022 15:25 | RobertMB | Updated [Registration, Cn, Location, Nature, Source, Embed code, Narrative, ] |
| 04-Aug-2022 14:06 | AgOps | Updated [Registration, Phase, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 30-Aug-2022 21:49 | Captain Adam | Updated [Time, Location, Phase, Nature, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 30-Aug-2024 21:44 | Captain Adam | Updated [Location, Source, Narrative, Accident report, Photo, ] |
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