Piper PA-28-140 N44245 accident near Amado, Arizona

Probable cause

The inflight separation of a section of a propeller blade due to a fatigue crack, which resulted in a forced landing.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that during the flight, the airplane suddenly started vibrating. After checking the magneto switch and looking over the instruments for any cylinder anomalies, he shut down the engine. The pilot initiated a forced landing to a field during which the right wing impacted a tree. The airplane landed hard in a muddy field, collapsing the nose landing gear.

Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed a portion of the propeller blade had separated in flight. Examination of the propeller revealed that the propeller blade exhibited a fatigue crack that initiated near the trailing edge of the blade. Metal transfer from an alloy dissimilar to that of the blade’s material likely resulted from an object that impacted the blade face near the trailing edge. The red transfer marks on the blade were likely impact marks from contacting the engine cowling during the accident sequence.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR21LA301 for the full record.