Piper PA-46-310P incident near Belmar, New Jersey, July 15, 1999
On July 15, 1999 at about 5:55 pm local time, a Piper PA-46-310P, registered N121GP, suffered minor damage in an incident near Belmar, New Jersey. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The failure of the turbocharger clamp, resulting from improper welding settings during manufacture.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 15, 1999 · about 5:55 pm local time
- Place
- Belmar, New Jersey
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-46-310P · all PA-46-310Ps on the register
- Registration
- N121GP · registry record · serial 46-8508086
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
After takeoff, when the airplane was climbing through 12,000 feet, heavy black smoke appeared in the cockpit. The pilot declared an emergency, and successfully landed the airplane at a nearby airport. Post-flight inspection revealed that the left side turbocharger clamp had separated through the tensioning band, at the root of a spot weld. Subsequent microscopic examination in the area around the rim of the spot weld revealed a crystalline appearance. An analysis of a spot weld from the right turbocharger clamp revealed small recrystallized austenitic grains. The airplane's engine was installed in March 1991, and the turbochargers were replaced in June 1999. During the replacement, the turbocharger clamps were reused. The only requirement to change the turbocharger clamps was a mandatory replacement at engine overhaul.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,000 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 35 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 3,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,009 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 16, 1999; 55 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: VAY Mt Holly NJ at 5:40 pm
- Destination: BOS Boston MA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.