Oct. 8, Berlin, Md. / Piper Arrow

At 16:23 EDT, a Piper PA-28R-200 made a forced landing following a loss of engine power near Berlin, seriously injuring the pilot and passenger. An annual inspection had been completed the day before the accident, but an instrument training flight after the release from maintenance had turned up no anomalies. On the day of the accident, the pilot took off but the gear did not retract. He returned to land, and a mechanic adjusted the landing gear. The pilot took off again and made two additional flights, refueling after the second flight. The pilot said that upon leaving Ocean City, the second destination, the airplane lost power. He recalled hearing a clicking sound, but nothing else. The passenger said that when the engine began running rough, the pilot decided on a road under construction as a landing site and flew a normal traffic pattern. On final, a construction vehicle entered the road. In dodging the vehicle, the airplane struck wires and came to rest on top of a piece of construction equipment.