NTSB Identification: ERA12FA423
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, June 30, 2012 in Dalton, GA
Aircraft: PIPER PA-31P, registration: N33CG
Injuries: 1 Fatal.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
On June 30, 2012, about 1620 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-31P, N33CG, registered to a private owner collided with terrain while descending in the vicinity of Dalton Municipal Airport (DNN), Dalton, Georgia, and a post crash fire ensued. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The personal flight was conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The private pilot was fatally injured. The flight originated from DNN at 1615.

According to witnesses they heard an airplane coming towards them and it sounded like it was flying very low. They looked up and saw the airplane at about 200 feet above the ground in a descending attitude. The left engine sounded as if it was running at full power and the right engine was not running. The right propeller was not moving. The airplane pitched up to avoid a power line and rolled to the right descending below the tree line, followed by a plume of smoke and an explosion.

Examination of the airplane revealed the fuselage and both wings were fire damaged. The instrument panel was destroyed. Continuity of the flight controls could not be manipulated but were verified to their respective flight control surfaces. The left and right engine assemblies with propellers attached were located and transported to a storage facility pending further examination.

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