Piper PA-34-200 accident near La Verne, California, July 8, 1993
On July 8, 1993 at about 2:37 am local time, a Piper PA-34-200, registered N1392T, was destroyed in an accident near La Verne, California. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR'S FAILURE TO OBTAIN/MAINTAIN BEST THE SINGLE-ENGINE RATE-OF-CLIMB AIRSPEED, AND HIS FAILURE TO ENSURE THAT THE LANDING GEAR WAS RETRACTED. A FACTOR RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WAS CONTAMINATION IN THE FUEL SYSTEM, WHICH BLOCKED FUEL FLOW THROUGH THE FLOW DIVIDER AND RESULTED IN FUEL STARVATION TO ONE ENGINE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 8, 1993 · about 2:37 am local time
- Place
- La Verne, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-34-200 · all PA-34-200s on the register
- Registration
- N1392T · no longer on the register · serial 34-7250306
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR (CFI) SAID THAT DURING THE INITIAL CLIMB AND AFTER GEAR RETRACTION THE LEFT ENGINE LOST POWER. HE TOOK CONTROL AND FEATHERED THE LEFT PROP, BUT WAS UNABLE TO ESTABLISH A SINGLE-ENGINE RATE-OF-CLIMB. HE ATTEMPTED TO FLY THROUGH A LOW POINT IN HILLY TERRAIN, BUT THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH A POWER LINE AND CRASHED INTO A RAVINE. THE LANDING GEAR WAS FOUND IN THE EXTENDED AND LOCKED POSITION, AND A GROUND WITNESS SAW THE GEAR EXTENDED DURING THE FLIGHT. THE LEFT ENGINE FUEL FLOW DIVIDER WAS FOUND TO BE PARTIALLY PLUGGED WITH A GREY/WHITE MATERIAL (CONTAMINATION). LABORATORY ANALYSIS IDENTIFIED THE MATERIAL AS POLYETHYLENE TEREPHTHALATE (PET), A THERMOPLASTIC MATERIAL. ORIGIN OF THE CONTAMINATE WAS UNKNOWN. ACCORDING TO THE AIRCRAFT SINGLE ENGINE PERFORMANCE CHART, THE AIRPLANE SHOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO CLIMB AT ABOUT 150 FEET PER MINUTE. A PILOT-RATED PASSENGER IN THE REAR HEARD THE STALL HORN SOUNDING AFTER THE CFI TOOK CONTROL AND ATTEMPTED TO ESTABLISH A SINGLE-ENGINE CLIMB. VYSE IS 103 MPH AND VSO IS 73 MPH.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 560 hours in all; 18 in this make and model; 50 in the last 90 days; 35 in the last 30 days; 500 as pilot in command; 100 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,573 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 16, 1993; 59 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,200 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-C1E6 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Air Desert Pacific
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:46 am from POC, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.