Piper PA 23

Full Narrative

The pilot reported that during an instructional flight in a twin-engine airplane he made a successful landing to a stubble field approximately one half mile from their destination airport following a failed mid-air engine restart. After successfully starting the engine on the ground, the student walked back to the airport, while the pilot decided to attempt an off-airport departure from the frozen ground with 4 inch tall alfalfa stubble. He selected a takeoff path that didn't contain any visible obstructions and that he estimated would allow for a 3,000 ft ground roll. The pilot taxied to the edge of the field, held the brakes, applied full power to the engines, released the brakes and the airplane began to move. Approximately 700 ft into the ground roll, the airplane impacted a shallow rut from an irrigation pivot and the nose landing gear collapsed, which resulted in substantial damage to the forward fuselage.

In a subsequent interview, the pilot commented that his decision to depart from the field was poor as he made the decision to execute the takeoff without first walking the takeoff terrain.