Piper PA28 N5915U accident near Miami, Florida

Probable cause

The flight instructor's and student pilot's inadequate preflight inspection of the fuel system for water contamination, which resulted in a loss of engine power during takeoff and subsequent forced landing.

NTSB analysis

The flight instructor and student pilot conducted a preflight inspection of the airplane before the local flight. All the indications were "normal" during the run up. At 150-200 ft above ground level, the engine had a partial loss of power. The instructor subsequently took over the controls; he reported that "everything" was good. During a turn to land the airplane on a parallel runway, the engine lost all power and the instructor decided to conduct a forced landing on a corn field between runways, where the airplane sustained substantial damage.

An examination of the airplane revealed that the left wing fuel tank contained 16 oz of water. The gascolator bowl and carburetor contained a liquid consistent with water and fuel.

It is likely that the flight instructor and student pilot did not conduct a thorough preflight inspection and did not detect and remove the water in the fuel system, which led to the loss of engine power.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN19LA252 for the full record.