# Accident 19990501020459A: Piper J3C65, Claremore, OK, May 1, 1999

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 1, 1999, 19:18 local time
- Place: Claremore, OK
- Airport: Sam Riggs Airpark Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Go Round (Aborted VFR)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 36.3092° N, 95.6107° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.3092&lon=-95.6107&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3732C, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3732C-2017-03-10) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper J3C-65 (registry code 7100510, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-j3c-65) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental A&C65 series (registry code 17003, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-c65-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER J3C65
- Reported engine: CONT A658
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 443 total, 19 in this make and model, 38 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW99LA129](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA129) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990501020459A

## Narrative

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

ON MAY 1, 1999, ABOUT 2018 CENTRAL DAYLIGHT TIME, A PIPER J3C-65 AIRPLANE, N3732C, WAS DESTROYED BY A POSTIMPACT FIRE FOLLOWING TERRAIN IMPACT WHILE MANEUVERING IN THE TRAFFIC PATTERN AT THE SAM RIGGS AIRPARK NEAR CLAREMORE, OKLAHOMA. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED, AND A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED FOR THE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (CFR) PART 91 LOCAL PERSONAL FLIGHT.  THE AIRCRAFT WAS REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY SAM RIGGS FLYING SERVICE, INC.  THE COMMERCIAL RATED PILOT AND HIS ONLY PASSENGER WERE SERIOUSLY INJURED.  EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT WRECKAGE BY THE FAA INSPECTOR REVEALED FLIGHT CONTROL CONTINUITY.  ONE PROPELLER BLADE WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE, AND THE OTHER BLADE "EXHIBITED EVIDENCE OF POWER."  THERE WERE ALSO DEEP GOUGES IN THE GROUND THAT "APPEAR TO BE PROPELLER SLASHES."            (.4) WHILE TURNING THE AIRPLANE TO LAND AT A GRASS STRIP, THE COMMERCIAL PILOT STALLED THE AIRPLANE. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT TOOK OVER CONTROL FROM THE PILOT RATED PASSENGER, WHO WAS LANDING THE AIRPLANE, DUE TO AN ULTRALIGHT OPERATING ON THE GRASS STRIP. THE PILOT PITCHED THE AIRCRAFT'S `NOSE UP TO CLIMB A LITTLE AND REDUCE SPEED.' HE WAS TURNING THE AIRCRAFT LEFT FROM       DOWNWIND TO BASE WHEN IT STALLED. THE AIRCRAFT'S `NOSE PITCHED DOWN SHARPLY AND IMPACTED THE GROUND.' THE PILOT REPORTED THAT AS THE AIRCRAFT TURNED, THE `ENGINE DIED,' AND HE CONTINUED TURNING TOWARD AN OPEN AREA. EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT WRECKAGE BY THE FAA INSPECTOR REVEALED THAT ONE PROPELLER BLADE `EXHIBITED EVIDENCE OF POWER.' THERE WERE ALSO DEEP GOUGES IN THE GROUND THAT `APPEAR TO BE PROPELLER SLASHES.' CONTINUITY WAS ESTABLISHED TO ALL FLIGHT CONTROLS. THE PASSENGER STATED THAT `HE DID NOT OBSERVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH THE AIRCRAFT OR ENGINE PERFORMANCE.' (-23)ON MAY 1, 1999, ABOUT 2018 CDT, A PIPER J3C-65 WAS DESTROYED BY A POST IMPACT FIRE AFTER IT ENTERED A STALL CONDITION WHEN MANEUVERING IN THE PATTERN AT SAM RIGGS AIRPARK, NEAR CLARMORE, OK.  THE WEATHER WAS VMC AND THE WINDS WERE REPORTED TO BE 120 DEGREES AT FIVE.  THE TWO OCCUPANTS OF THE AIRCRAFT WERE SERIOUSLY INJURED AS A RESULT OF THE FIRE.  EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT WRECKAGE DID NOT REVEAL ANY AIRWORTHINESS PROBLEMS.

## 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 FTW99LA129](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA129), May 2, 1999: Piper J3C-65 (N3732C), Claremore, OK, destroyed. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain minimum airspeed for flight while maneuvering, which resulted in an inadvertent stall.

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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