NTSB Goes to Fewer Crashes

Three months later, in Byram Township, N.J., another pilot flying a Piper with the same model of Lycoming engine crashed after the engine quit at 3,500 feet. Two people were killed, and two others on board were seriously injured. The NTSB sent an investigator to that accident, which was caused by a failure of the same crankshaft gear bolt.

Safety experts and makers of small aircraft said the incident highlights the consequences of the NTSB's picking and choosing certain kinds of accidents to investigate on-site.

"While the FAA is very competent, what they do in their primary mission is not accident investigation," said Gregg Feith, a former NTSB accident investigator who works as a safety consultant. Feith said the FAA serves as a regulatory agency whereas the NTSB is an independent agency whose sole mission is to find the cause of accidents. "If you don't go on-scene and examine it, you're never going to find out the root cause . . . you're going to find the obvious cause," he said.

The NTSB said it is "unfair" to blame the second Piper accident on the NTSB's decision not to send an investigator to the other accident. Jeff Guzzetti, the NTSB's director for regional operations, blamed the FAA for not alerting the aviation community to the problems with the crankshaft bolt sooner.

The FAA disagreed, saying that it was aware of the Lycoming problem with helicopters but was not aware that the problem existed on planes.

Brian Riley, lobbyist for a group representing small-plane manufacturers such as Cessna and Piper, said he has urged Congress to give the NTSB more money so it could hire more investigators.

The 2007 budget plan gives the agency a boost, from $76 million to $80 million, after a flat budget from 2005 to 2006. But it is unclear if Congress will approve the administration's request -- and if it does, how the NTSB would spend it.

Riley said he does not see much hope for more investigators.

"In an ideal world, I'd like them to do all accidents, but I know that will never happen," said Riley, of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. "We feel the NTSB is the unqualified organization who can come out and do an investigation. They are rarely challenged. It's like a stamp of approval."