# Accident 19990111000419A: Piper PA28181, Arlington, AZ, January 11, 1999 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: January 11, 1999, 07:44 local time - Place: Arlington, AZ - Damage: Destroyed - Phase of flight: Sfl Go Around - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 33.1802° N, 112.7893° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.1802&lon=-112.7893&mi=10 - Aircraft: N4129S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N4129S-1999-08-05) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Piper PA-28-181 (registry code 7102807, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28-181) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: PIPER PA28181 - Reported engine: LYC O360A4M - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 12,514 total, 219 in this make and model, 134 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX99LA073](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX99LA073) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990111000419A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (.19) ON JANUARY 11, 1999, AT 0744 HOURS MOUNTAIN STANDARD TIME, A PIPER PA-28-181, N4129S, OPERATED BY THE AIRLINE TRAINING CENTER ARIZONA, INC., COLLIDED WITH A RESIDENTIAL SERVICE POWER LINE AND AN UNOCCUPIED HOUSE DURING A PRACTICE FORCED LANDING NEAR ARLINGTON, ARIZONA. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED DURING THE INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT, AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYED, AND THE CERTIFIED FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR, WHO HELD AN AIRLINE TRANSPORT PILOT CERTIFICATE, RECEIVED MINOR INJURIES. THE PRIVATE PILOT, WHO WAS RECEIVING A POST-CERTIFICATION PROGRESS CHECK, AND THE PASSENGER WERE NOT INJURED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM GOODYEAR, ARIZONA, ABOUT 0700. THE OPERATOR ESTIMATED THAT THE INITIAL POINT OF IMPACT OCCURRED OVER THE HOUSE APPROXIMATELY 800 FEET MEAN SEA LEVEL (MSL), AND ABOUT 12 FEET ABOVE GROUND LEVEL. THE LOCATION WAS ABOUT 550 FEET SHORT OF THE APPROACH END OF A DIRT AIRSTRIP USED BY CROP DUSTERS. ACCORDING TO THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR, HE INITIATED THE SIMULATED TOTAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER APPROACHING THE AIRSTRIP AT 2,000 FEET MSL. THE STUDENT WAS HANDLING THE FLIGHT CONTROLS AND PROCEEDED TOWARD THE AIRSTRIP. THE INSTRUCTOR REPORTED THAT SECONDS PRIOR TO THE COLLISION HE DIRECTED THAT A GO-AROUND BE INITIATED, AND THE STUDENT APPLIED FULL ENGINE POWER. (.4)THE CERTIFIED FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR (CFI) WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE AREA, AND HE INITIATED A SIMULATED TOTAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER AND PRACTICE FORCED LANDING FOR HIS STUDENT AS THEY APPROACHED A CROP DUSTER AIRSTRIP. THE DIRT AIRSTRIP IS LOCATED ON A SMALL BLUFF, AND APPROACHING IT THEY ENCOUNTERED A DOWNDRAFT. THE STUDENT RESET THE WING FLAPS FROM 40 TO 25 DEGREES; HOWEVER, THE AIRPLANE DESCENDED BELOW THE DESIRED GLIDE PATH. THE CFI ALLOWED THE STUDENT TO CONTINUE APPROACHING THE AIRSTRIP. THE CFI DIRECTED THAT A GO-AROUND BE INITIATED, AND ENGINE POWER WAS RAPIDLY APPLIED. SECONDS LATER, THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED A RESIDENTIAL SERVICE POWER LINE AND AN UNOCCUPIED HOUSE AS THE POWER WAS INCREASING. THE AIRPLANE CAME TO REST ABOUT 550 SHORT OF THE AIRSTRIP. THE OPERATOR, WHO EMPLOYED THE CFI, REPORTED THAT IT HAD PROVIDED THE CFI WITH WRITTEN GUIDANCE REGARDING THE MINIMUM ALTITUDE AT WHICH GO-AROUNDS WERE TO BE INITIATED DURING THE PRACTICE OF SIMULATED FORCED LANDINGS. IN PERTINENT PART, THE OPERATOR'S PROCEDURES AND TECHNIQUES MANU AL STATED THE FOLLOWING: 'EVERY GO AROUND FROM A SIMULATED ENGINE FAILURE SHALL BE PERFORMED BY THE STUDENT PRIOR TO 500 FEET AGL IF NOT APPROACHING A PAVED RUNWAY.' (-23)DURING AN INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT THE STUDENT MANEUVERED FOR A SIMULATED ENGINE FAILURE APPROACH AN THE INSTRUCTOR TOOK OVER THE FLIGHT CONTROLS JUST BEFORE IMPACTING A BUILDING AND COMING TO REST JUST BEYOND THE IMPACT POINT. ## 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 LAX99LA073](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX99LA073), Jan 11, 1999: Piper PA-28-181 (N4129S), Arlington, AZ, destroyed. Probable cause: The flight instructor's inadequate supervision of his student and his failure to initiate timely remedial action. Contributing factors were the student's failure to maintain the proper glidepath… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.