United States of America

The aircraft had departed Laredo, TX, on a flight to Fort Smith, AR, with an intermediate stop at Brinkley, AR. The fuel tanks were 'topped' at Laredo, but no fuel was added at Brinkley. During arrival at Fort Smith, the pilot declared an emergency for 'extremely low fuel.' He was cleared for a straight-in approach. Very shortly after that, both engines began running rough with both fuel boost pump lights illuminated. The pilot informed the tower that he would not be able to reach the airport. He selected a dark unpopulated area to land and extended the gear. When he turned on the landing lights, he realize he had selected a wooded area. The aircraft was destroyed after impacting trees. The pilot had begun the first of six flights at 0608 cdt and had gotten very little sleep the preceding night. Both occupants were seriously injured.

The pilot stated that during takeoff roll he experienced a power surge but the engine did not quit. He aborted the takeoff by reducing power on both engines and applying brakes. This resulted in the aircraft swerving off the right side of the runway, rolling thru the grass and striking a culvert which separated the landing gear. Wreckage examination revealed: both throttles at idle, mixture and prop controls were full forward and full rich and high rpm on respective engine controls. All cables attaching hardware was intact.

Turning onto the runway the copilot observed a flash behind his instrument panel. He then received an electrical shock to his right arm from the right console. A fire then erupted at the lower right hand corner of his instrument panel. The crew and pax evacuated the aircraft. The interior of the aircraft was consumed by fire as well as most of the upper half of the fuselage. Examination of the right side wire bundle revealed numerous indications of arcing between wires and from wires to ground. One wire was arced at a point in line with a plastic oxygen line. There was also an oily residue inside the wire bundle. A small section of the right brake pressure line exhibited signs of elect arcing. The hydraulic system pressure gage copper line also showed signs of arcing. The plastic oxygen lines from the the cockpit side of the forward pressure bulkhead to the cockpit outlets had been consumed by fire and the oxygen supply was depleated.

The crew was completing a local training mission at Elizabeth City Airport consisting of touch-and-go maneuvers. The aircraft crashed in unknown circumstances, killing all four crew members.

During the takeoff run, at 85 knots, the aircraft hit a bump and the pilot stated his forward vision was obstructed by water on the windshield. He instinctively pulled back on the controls and become airborne. He lost sight of the right side set of runway lights and was reportedly flying 'blind.' The aircraft drifted left into trees and came to rest in shallow water in a backwater area 150 feet north of the departure end of runway 10. Many of the runway lights were either not operating or were obstructed. No lights in the last 1000 feet of the runway were both operating and unobstructed. The noaa airport/facility director contains a remark for the airport 'runway subject to flooding after very heavy rains.' This remark does not appear in the Jeppesen 'airport directory' that the pilot was using. After the accident the pilot stated he walked through the eastern end of the runway and found himself 'up to his ankles' in about 3 inches of water. All four occupants escaped with minor injuries.

The aircraft was on a sport parachute flight to carry 24 parachutists to 12,500' over a drop zone (dz) for a mass jump. It was in a cargo configuration with no passenger seats, but it had one jump seat. There were 24 seat belts on the floor of the cargo area. Also, the cabin door had been removed and an unapproved step and 4 handholds were installed outside and forward of the cabin door for parachutists. The usual jump-run procedure was for the aircraft to be slowed to 95 to 100 knots, extend the gear and approach flaps and reduce power on the left engine. The jumpers remained in position without using seat belts until approaching the dz, then two moved outside the aircraft while others moved close to the doorway. The first jumpers were unaware of any problem, but saw the aircraft enter a steep bank, roll over and spiral nose down. 16 jumpers exited the aircraft, but three hit the stabilizer. The aircraft crashed in a near vertical descent. Investigation revealed the cg was behind the aft limit for takeoff and the jump. The elevator trim actuator was found in a position for full nose-up trim.

The aircraft got into a downdraft and collided with hilly terrain. The pilot stated that he was spotting caribou and settled into the side of a hill. According to the passengers the aircraft was about 300 feet agl prior to the descent to ground contact. All five occupants were injured and the aircraft was destroyed.

Investigation revealed that the pilot aborted two takeoff attempts due to a 'roughness' in one engine. Not able to duplicate the roughness during subsequent ground checks, the pilot departed. At an altitude of 300 feet agl the left engine began to surge and the right engine, according to the pilot, 'seemed to be delivering no power either and I could feel the plane decelerating.' The pilot stated he turned the aircraft to miss a housing development. A witness stated that the left wing dropped and the aircraft dove into the ground at about 45° angle. Investigation failed to reveal any reason for loss of engine power. Both passengers were seriously injured and the pilot was killed.

The aircraft departed Las Vegas, NV as the 2nd of 5 aircraft on a scheduled Grand Canyon sightseeing flight. The 1st portion of the flight was over the Las Vegas strip area and Lake Mead and was uneventful. However, weather conditions precluded the pilot from continuing over the Shivwits plateau. Radio conversations between the pilot and other company aircrews indicated that the pilot of N88LV had encountered deteriorating weather conditions in the canyon and that he had decided to abort the flight and climb out. Later attempts to contact the aircraft were unsuccessful. The wreckage was found on 8/18/83 where the aircraft had collided on the west wall of a mesa inside the canyon. A helicopter pilot flying about 14 miles north of the crash site reported clouds at ground level (4,500 feet msl). The elevation of the accident site was 6,320 feet. Shortly before his last transmission, the pilot stated he was 'just short of Twin Peaks.' The pilot had transmitted his position from Peach VOR, indicating he was in the area of the crash site. Twin Peaks was northeast and had similar terrain. All 10 occupants were killed.
Crew:
Wallace S. Gustafson Jr., pilot.
Passengers:
Enrico Annibali,
Maria Vittoria Annibali,
Giancarlo Annibali,
Luciano Annibali,
Guliana Ranieri-Annibali,
Francesca Annibali,
Federica Annibali,
Stefano Annibali,
Daniele Vernava.
Photos: https://www.lostflights.com/Grand-Canyon-Aviation/81783-Las-Vegas-Airlines-Piper/

After lift-off a flock of birds approached from left to right at about 400 feet. The pilot maneuvered the aircraft behind and above the birds in an attempt to avoid them. Both engines flamed out and the aircraft made a forced landing on a road. Ground witnesses described the climbout as '...very steep...' and '...a steep angle, between 40° 45°.' There was some bird residue on the engines. Both pilots escaped uninjured.