NTSB Factual Report

On July 7, 2017, about 0735 eastern daylight time, a Cessna T337D, N337J, was substantially damaged during a forced landing near Greenwood County Airport (GRD), Greenwood, South Carolina. The flight instructor and a private pilot sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the local instructional flight. The airplane was owned and operated by a private individual under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.

According to the flight instructor, their intention was to fly the airplane around the local area to get the private pilot familiar with a multiengine airplane. The private pilot performed the preflight checklist with no anomalies noted, and the main fuel tank was three-quarters full. The engine run-up was normal and they departed from runway 27. After departure, they flew outside of the airport traffic pattern to get the private pilot comfortable at the controls, then they returned to the airport and performed three touch-and-go landings. After the third touch-and-go landing, they departed the traffic pattern again and practiced some steep turns and performed one aerodynamic stall. After the practicing the stall, the front engine started to surge from high power to low power and then lost all power. The flight instructor told the private pilot to turn back to the airport and fly to the runway while he looked in the emergency checklist for the engine-out procedure. The rear engine was still operating normally at the time. The flight instructor turned the boost pump on, switched the fuel tank from main to auxiliary, and then back to main when the front engine did not restart. He recalled that sometime during the flight back to the airport, the rear engine also experienced a total loss of power. The airplane was too low to reach the runway, and the private pilot transferred control to the flight instructor, who performed a forced landing into the trees.

Examination of the wreckage by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the airplane came to rest on its right side. The right wing separated from the fuselage and was found inverted on the fuselage. The left wing and strut were still attached to the fuselage. Both wings had impact marks consistent with hitting trees. The front and rear engine propellers did not exhibit rotational scoring. The landing gear was down and locked.

The airplane was retained for further examination.