# Accident 19970817022609A: Piper PA32R301, Jefferson City, MO, August 17, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 17, 1997, 19:09 local time
- Place: Jefferson City, MO
- Airport: Jefferson City Memorial
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: To Init Climb(1st Pwr Reduct)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 38.4992° N, 92.1303° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.4992&lon=-92.1303&mi=10
- Aircraft: N8147B, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N8147B) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-32R-301 (registry code 7103218, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-32r-301) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA32R301
- Reported engine: LYC IO540K1G5
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 5,235 total, 7 in this make and model, 4 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI97LA262](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA262) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970817022609A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

PREMATURE LIFTOFF BEHIND POWER CURVE. SETTLED STALL MUSHED TO IMPACT. HELICOPTER PILOT. MINIMUM FIXED WING TIME. (.4)THE PILOT SAID THAT THEY HAD JUST TAKEN OFF AND WERE 'APPROXIMATELY 20 TO 25 FEET IN THE AIR WHEN THE ENGINE RPM DROPPED FROM 2,700 TO 400.'  AS THE AIRSPEED DECREASED, THE AIRPLANE BEGAN TO ROLL TO THE LEFT.  THE PILOT SAID THAT HE KEPT THE NOSE OF THE AIRPLANE UP, AND LEVELED THE WINGS.  'AS THE AIRPLANE BEGAN TO SETTLE, THE RPM ZOOMED TO 700.  THE AIRPLANE TOUCHED DOWN AND THEN BOUNCED BACK INTO THE AIR.' THE AIRPLANE WAS ABOUT 20 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND WHEN THE RPM DROPPED TO ZERO AND THE LEFT WING DROPPED AGAIN.  THE PILOT AGAIN LEVELED THE WINGS.  BY THIS TIME THE AIRPLANE WAS LEFT OF THE RUNWAY.  THE PILOT DECIDED TO LAND IN THE DIRT ALONG-SIDE THE RUNWAY.  'THE AIRPLANE TOUCHED DOWN HARD AND THEN SLID FOR A SHORT DISTANCE.'  THE PASSENGER IN THE RIGHT FRONT SEAT SAID THAT AFTER A SHORT TAKEOFF ROLL, THE AIRPLANE GOT AIRBORNE, CAME DOWN, BOUNCED BACK IN THE AIR, AND THEN CAME DOWN VERY FAST HITTING LEFT WING FIRST.  THE PASSENGER IN THE RIGHT REAR SEA                                                                                                                T SAID THAT IT WAS LOUD WHEN THEY TOOK OFF AND THAT THE AIRPLANE WAS VIBRATING AND SEEMED VERY ROUGH. EXMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE'S STABILIZER TRIM SHOWED AN ALMOST FULL NOSE UP TRIM SETTING.  THE RUDDER TRIM WAS SET AT FULL NOSE LEFT.  NO OTHER ANOMALIES WERE REVEALED WITH THE AIRPLANE.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB CHI97LA262](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA262), Aug 17, 1997: Piper PA-32R-301 (N8147B), Jefferson City, MO, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's incomplete preflight of the airplane's stabilizer and rudder trim settings for takeoff, his failure to correct for the high pitch during the initial climb, his failure to recover from the…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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