This is an excerpt from a report made to the Aviation Safety Reporting System. The narrative is written by the pilot, rather than FAA or NTSB officials. To maintain anonymity, many details, such as aircraft model or airport, are often scrubbed from the reports.
Narrative 1
Had a normal flight and did a thorough pre-flight and noticed nothing that would indicate a failure was possible.
We conducted a mostly VFR flight doing practice approaches into ZZZ1, and a few laps in the pattern there. Then we picked up a pop-up clearance to shoot an approach into ZZZ.
On the RNAV XX Z into ZZZ we did hear a thud. It happened while my student was lowering the gear, but we had three green lights and nothing else seemed wrong so we proceeded on approach. We did the approach and landed with no issue.
When we walked around to push the plane back into the parking spot we noticed the last 36 inches of the wing was missing. It fell off where the screws attached the last fiber glass pieces. No screws are missing and it looked like the fiber glass tore off around the holes for the screws. I am not positive where the piece could be located.
Narrative 2
Following a day VFR flight in a Piper Seminole, on post-flight, it was revealed that the end portion of the left wing was missing from the aircraft. The portion that is missing is curved in shape with rivet points on the inside edge and rounded on the outside lights with position flights on edge.
The flight departed ZZZ and proceeded to ZZZ1 VFR at 2,500 feet and proceeded to conduct three instrument approaches at ZZZ2, RNAV RWYXX followed by five VFR landings in the local pattern. All landings were uneventful.
Departing ZZZ1 the flight contacted approach to get IFR handling for a RNAV XX to ZZZ for a full stop on Runway XY and taxied off at Taxiway 1, to the ramp to shutdown.
Upon post flight inspection, it was noticed that the portion of the left wing was no longer attached to the aircraft.
The only audible noise during the flight occurred between ZZZ to ZZZ1 on the RNAV Z to ZZZ at 2,000 feet MSL when the landing gear was lowered during approach. The audible noise was more pronounced than previous gear lowering cycles.
Primary Problem: Aircraft
ACN: 2142557
