N5566JPiper PA-32-260 · 1968

On November 24, 2020, about 1530 eastern daylight time, a Piper Cherokee, PA-32-260, N5566J, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Greenville Donaldson Field (GYH), Greenville, South Carolina. The private pilot and passenger sustained serious injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

According to the pilot, he flew to GYH to “do some traffic pattern work.” The airplane was cleared for a left closed traffic pattern and landed on runway 05. After the second landing, he was instructed by the tower controller to fly a right traffic pattern due to incoming traffic from the west. The tower controller cleared the pilot to extend the downwind leg of the traffic pattern to avoid the inbound traffic that was on the final approach leg of the traffic pattern. The pilot acknowledged the tower controller’s instructions and proceeded.

During the extended downwind leg, the engine began to lose power. The pilot attempted to restore full power and turned directly to the airport while notifying the tower controller of his emergency. During that time, the pilot “verified fuel selector, turned fuel pump on, cycled mags, verified mixture full rich, pulled carb heat, and checked gauges.” According to the pilot, the engine “never seemed to have quit running but would not make power no matter what I did.” The airplane subsequently collided with a building during a descending turn. The left wing separated, and the fuselage was substantially damaged.

A review of the weather conditions at the accident airport GYH, included winds calm, 10 statute miles visibility, and clear skies. The temperature was 53° F, the dew point was 30° F, and the altimeter setting was 30.31 inches of mercury. Review of the icing probability chart contained within Federal Aviation Administration Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin CE-09-35 revealed the atmospheric conditions at the time of the accident were "conducive to serious icing at glide power."

Postaccident examination of the engine revealed that the external accessories of the engine were still attached to the engine case. The ignition system was intact and all spark plug leads were still connected to the magnetos and spark plugs. The spark plugs were removed, and no anomalies were noted. The fuel lines were intact but impact damaged, no fuel was observed within the breached fuel system lines. The carburetor bowl was removed and no debris was observed within the bowl. No anomalies were noted with the carburetor assembly. The propeller was rotated by hand and compression was observed on all of the engine’s cylinders. Valvetrain movement was observed, but the No. 1, No. 2 pushrods and tubes were impact damaged. The propeller showed signs of chordwise bending and scoring. All fuel system and oil lines were impact damaged. The engine driven fuel pump was removed and hand operated; it was supplied fuel and pumped fuel out of a container. The electrical fuel pump could not be tested due to extensive damage.