Piper PA32

Full Narrative

On February 28, 2019, at 1352 eastern standard time, a privately owned and operated Piper PA32-260, N1563X, was ditched into the Atlantic Ocean about 25 nautical miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida. The private pilot was uninjured. The airplane was not recovered and presumed substantially damaged. The flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight, which departed Treasure Coast International Airport (FPR), Fort Pierce, Florida, around 1330 and was destined for Great Harbour Cay Airport (MYBG), Bullocks Harbour, Bahamas.According to the pilot, he topped off all fuel tanks in FPR, and was flying with visual flight rules flight following to the Bahamas. About 15 minutes after leveling off at 3,500 ft mean sea level, the engine started to "sputter" immediately after the pilot initiated a climb to 7,500 ft. He turned on the fuel boost pump, observed that the fuel pressure was adequate, but noted no improvement in engine performance. He then switched fuel tanks and applied carburetor heat but was unable to diagnose the problem, and the engine lost all power shortly thereafter. He turned into the wind, extended full flaps to reduce the airplane's ground speed, and advised air traffic control that he would be ditching. After landing in the water, the pilot egressed without incident onto the airplane's wing and deployed a life raft; the airplane subsequently sank and was not recovered. The pilot activated a personal emergency position-indicating radio beacon and was rescued.

According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records, the pilot held a private pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine and multi-engine land instrument airplane. A review of the pilot's logbook revealed 6,918.9 total hours of flight experience of which 810 hours were in the accident airplane make and model. The pilot's last flight review was logged February 8, 2018.

According to FAA records, the airplane was manufactured in 1975 and was powered by a 260-hp Lycoming O-540-E485 reciprocating engine. The airplane's most recent annual inspection was completed March 19, 2018, at a recorded tachometer reading of 898.2 hours and an airframe total time of 6,461.2 hours. The engine had accumulated 1,807.5 hours since major overhaul. The pilot reported 84 gallons of fuel onboard at the time of takeoff.

At 1353, the weather reported at Palm Beach International Airport (PBI), about 25 miles west of the accident site, included winds from 080° at 8 knots, visibility 10 miles, scattered clouds at 3,600 ft, temperature 24° C, dew point 17° C, and an altimeter setting of 30.05 inches of mercury. Review of a Carburetor Icing Probability Chart for the given temperature and dew point revealed that the conditions were conducive to moderate icing at cruise power.