Lake Elmo

On October 2, 2020, about 1512 central daylight time (CDT), a Piper PA-46-500TP, N62ZM, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Lake Elmo, Minnesota. The airline transport pilot sustained serious injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal flight. The pilot reported that shortly after takeoff from runway 32 at the Lake Elmo airport (21D) and following landing gear retraction, he noticed a “hiccup” in the engine power and immediately started a turn back towards the airport. During the turn, all engine power was lost and the pilot executed a forced landing into a field of standing corn. The airplane impacted the terrain, bounced, and came to rest upright in the corn about ½ mile northwest of the departure end of runway 32. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing as a result of the impact and post-crash fire. The airplane was equipped with a Pratt & Whitney PT6A turboprop engine.

The pilot reported that the airplane lifted off at 70 knots. After accelerating in ground effect the airplane became 'unstable in the roll axis' so he added power. He reported that the left wing tip contacted the runway approximately 3/4 the way down the runway. The pilot then added additional power at which point the left wing contacted the grass off the left side of the departure end of the runway. The pilot then reduced the power to idle and landed the airplane in the grass collapsing the landing gear. The pilot reported that the engines sounded normal throughout the accident sequence. Investigation revealed another Beech 18 had taken off on the same runway, but in the opposite direction of N916TM less than one minute prior to the accident.