Piper PA-46-500TP incident near Parowan, Utah, January 16, 2007
On January 16, 2007 at about 6:55 pm local time, a Piper PA-46-500TP, registered N747BL, suffered minor damage in an incident near Parowan, Utah (Parowan Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The inadequate design of the engine mount, which caused an uncommanded left turn during the landing roll, loss of directional control, and impact with snow-covered terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 16, 2007 · about 6:55 pm local time
- Place
- Parowan, Utah · Parowan Airport · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-46-500TP · all PA-46-500TPs on the register
- Registration
- N747BL · registry record · serial 4697226
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
At the end of the landing rollout the pilot experienced a loss of control, which resulted in the airplane veering off the left side of the runway and impacting a snow bank before the nose landing gear collapsed. An examination of the nose gear revealed that the rear actuator bolt had failed due to overload during the event sequence and that the engine mount was bent near the nose gear actuator attach feet. Following the identification of a number of cracked engine mounts, several Piper service bulletins were issued and the original engine mount was redesigned. The redesign process included finite element model analysis and other testing programs. These design tools were not incorporated in the original mount design. During a postaccident examination of a similar accident in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, in 2006, investigators found that there was compliance (flexibility) in the original engine mount actuator attach feet structure, which sometimes resulted in cracks in the engine mount at the actuator feet. The NTSB’s investigation of the Steamboat Springs accident determined that compliance was sometimes exacerbated at some speeds, resulting in a high shimmying effect and a subsequent uncommanded left or right turn of the nosewheel during takeoff or landing. Subsequent to the Steamboat Springs investigation, evidence was received of bulkhead damage immediately behind the engine mount found on a PA-46-310P in Greeley, Colorado. The Steamboat Springs accident airplane was reexamined in 2008, and similar firewall damage was found. The mechanical damage and marks were consistent with the engine mount contacting the bulkhead periodically before the accident. The new engine mount, which the manufacturer subsequently replaced under warranty on all PA 46-500TP airplanes, incorporates a heavy-duty, reinforced one-piece design at the actuator attach point, eliminating the two-piece design, which was previously produced in two-weld and subsequent single-weld versions. The reinforced, one-piece design provides a less compliant structure, which prevents relative motion between the two feet in the original engine mount design.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,171 hours in all; 181 in this make and model; 60 in the last 90 days; 20 in the last 30 days; 6,171 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: November 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 181 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 1, 2006; 25 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,134 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT-6 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LAS Las Vegas NV at 5:55 pm
- Destination: 1L9 Parowan UT
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22, 5,000 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 10°F (-12°C), dew point 1°F (-17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.36 inHg
- Observation at 6:55 pm from CDC, 17 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.