# Incident 19980127010869I: Piper PA24, Wadsworth, OH, January 27, 1998

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: January 27, 1998, 19:30 local time
- Place: Wadsworth, OH
- Airport: Wadsworth Municipal Airport
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Final Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 41.0031° N, 81.7565° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at WADSWORTH MUNI (3G3), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.0031&lon=-81.7565&mi=10
- Aircraft: N5043P, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5043P-2023-03-01) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-24 (registry code 7102402, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-24) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming O&VO-360 series (registry code 41514, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-o-vo-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA24
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 11 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980127010869I

## Narrative

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

NARRATIVE: THE EVENT ON JAN. 27, 1998, AT APPROXIMATELY 19:15 IN THE EVENING INVOLVING MR. CHARLES THIGPEN. AS HE WAS RETURNING TO WADSWORTH MUNICIPAL AIRPORT (3G3), ENROUTE FROM MUNICIPAL AIRPORT MUNCEY IND., HE WAS CIRCLING THE FIELD AND TRYING TO ACTIVATE THE RUNWAY LIGHTS FOR HIS APPROACH. THE LIGHTS FINALLY CAME ON. HE FINISHED HIS TURN DOWN WIND FOR FINAL AND THE LIGHTS WENT OUT. HE RETRIED TO RE-ACTIVATE THE LIGHTS, HE SAW TREES IN HIS WINDSCREEN, THEN IMPACTED THEM. HE CLIMBED OUT IMMEDIATELY, CALLED IN A MISSED APPROACH ON FREQUENCY 122.8 (REACTION). HE REASSESSED, HIS SITUATION, PUT HIS FLAPS UP, LEFT HIS GEAR DOWN. HE CIRCLED THE FIELD, REACTIVATED THE RUNWAY LIGHTS AND THEY CAME ON, HE LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. MR. THIGPEN THOUGHT HE WAS IN CONTROL OF THE RUNWAY LIGHTS. SUBSEQUENTLY HE DISCOVERED THAT DURING THE TIME OF EVENTS, THE CITY OF WADSWORTH HAD EXPERIENCED A POWER FAILURE IN THAT AREA. THE LIGHTS CAME INTERMITTENT DURING HIS APPROACH AND AGAIN DURING HIS SECOND APPROACH. THIS INFORMATION WAS VERIFIED BY THE WADSWORTH AIRPORT MANAGER DURING THE INVESTIGATION.

## Other reports on N5043P (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Incident 20110605009629I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20110605009629I), Jun 5, 2011: Piper PA-24 (N5043P), Wadsworth, OH, Minor damage. After departure from 3G3 pilot experienced a landing gear green light indicating all 3 gears were down and locked, however, upon gear retraction landing gears…

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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