# Accident 19980312046379A: Piper PA32260, Indianapolis, IN, March 12, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 12, 1998, 12:41 local time
- Place: Indianapolis, IN
- Airport: Indianapolis Brookside Airpark
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.8992° N, 85.9308° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.8992&lon=-85.9308&mi=10
- Aircraft: N55059, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N55059-2002-02-22) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-32-260 (registry code 7103206, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-32-260) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-540 series (registry code 41532, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-540-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA32260
- Reported engine: LYC O540B4B5
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 273 total, 198 in this make and model, 48 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI98LA102](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA102) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980312046379A

## Narrative

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

(.4)DURING A REPOSITIONING FLIGHT, THE AIRPLANE DEPARTED CONTROLLED FLIGHT AND IMPACTED THE TERRAIN. NO PRE-EXISTING ANOMALIES WERE FOUND DURING A POST ACCIDENT EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE AND ENGINE. A POST MORTEM EXAMINATION OF THE PILOT AND A TOXICOLOGICAL EXAMINATION OF SPECIMENS FROM THE PILOT WERE NEGATIVE. THE PILOT HAD AN APPOINTMENT AT HIS OFFICE AT 1300.  THE DISTANCE FROM THE ARRIVAL AIRPORT TO HIS OFFICE WAS 12.2 MILES.              (-23) ON MARCH 12, 1998, AT APPROXIMATELY 1130 AM EST, A PIPER PA-32-260, N55059 CRASHED ON DOWNWIND TO RUNWAY 18 AT BROOKSIDE AIRPORT, MCCORDSVILLE, INDIANA.  THE PILOT HELD A PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATE WITH AIRPLANE SINGLE ENGINE LAND AND AIRPLANE INSTRUMENT RATING. THE PILOT'S FIRST APPROACH WAS HIGH AND RESULTED IN A GO-AROUND.  DURING THE GO-AROUND THE AIRCRAFT STALLED AS IT JOINED THE LEFT DOWNWIND FOR RUNWAY 18.  DURING THE STALL THE LEFT WING DROPPED AND THE AIRCRAFT STARTED A LEFT SPIRAL AND IMPACTED THE GROUND IN A NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE INTO THE CORN FIELD APPROXIMATELY 400 FEET EAST OF THE RUNWAY.  THE PILOT WHO WAS THE SOLE OCCUPANT OF THE AIRCRAFT, SUFFERED FATAL INJURIES.  THE FLAPS AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT WERE IN THE FULL DOW N POSITION. THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED BY THE IMPACT INTO THE CORN FIELD.  THE WEATHER AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT WAS CLEAR, WITH BETTER THAN 10 NM VISIBILITY, AND THE WIND OUT OF THE NORTH NORTHWEST AT 5 TO 10 KNOTS.

## 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 CHI98LA102](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98LA102), Mar 12, 1998: Piper PA-32-260 (N55059), Mc Cordsville, IN, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed and control of the airplane. Factors were his self-induced pressure.

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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