NTSB report identifies cause of fatal 2024 Treasure Coast airport crash

The National Transportation Safety Board determined the cause of a deadly aircraft crash at Treasure Coast International Airport more than two years ago.On March 30, 2024, a student pilot and an instructor were involved in a crash of a Piper PA44 aircraft at Treasure Coast International Airport. The incident led to the death of the flight instructor, 22-year-old Maria Valentina Guillen, while the student pilot was seriously injured.Your neighborhood: Local coverage from WPBF 25 NewsThe NTSB determined in a March 26, 2026, report that the flight instructor failed to maintain control of the multiengine airplane after a partial loss of engine power on one engine during a go-around, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.The report goes on to state a contributing factor to the accident was the mechanic’s failure to check the condition/security of the right engine’s carburetor throttle arm linkage during the annual inspection, which resulted in a partial loss of engine power.The flight instructor and student pilot were practicing a simulated engine-out instrument approach with the left engine operating and the right engine at a reduced power setting.The approach ended in a missed approach/go-around. The student pilot told investigators that when he added power to the go around, the aircraft did not respond with the engine power command.He turned the aircraft to the missed approach heading provided by air traffic control. The flight instructor took control of the airplane and declared an emergency by telling air traffic control there was a “single engine.”The report notes that in an attempt to return to the runway, the instructor continued to turn the airplane to the right.The aircraft continued to lose altitude, stalled and crashed at the airport. The report says the student pilot thought that there was no thrust on either engine, but data from the aircraft revealed the left engine was at full power and the right engine was producing partial power from the time the go-around started to the crash. Get the latest news updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here.