# Accident 20020307003319A: Piper PA28R180, Coalinga, CA, March 7, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 7, 2002, 11:45 local time
- Place: Coalinga, CA
- Airport: Harris Ranch Airport
- Damage: No damage
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 36.2333° N, 120.2406° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.2333&lon=-120.2406&mi=10
- Aircraft: N800RC (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA28R180
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX02LA103](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA103) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020307003319A

## Narrative

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

(.19) ON MARCH 7, 2002, AT 1145 PACIFIC STANDARD TIME, A PIPER PA-28R-180, N800RC, DEPARTED RUNWAY 14 AFTER AN ATTEMPTED GO-AROUND, AND CAME TO REST IN A BROCCOLI FIELD AT THE HARRIS RANCH AIRPORT (3O8), COALINGA, CALIFORNIA. THE AIRPLANE, RENTED FROM MEMLEY AVIATION, INC., BY THE PILOT AND OPERATED UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91, SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. THE PRIVATE PILOT AND ONE PASSENGER WERE NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE LOCAL AREA FLIGHT THAT DEPARTED FROM THE FRESNO-CHANDLER DOWNTOWN AIRPORT, FRESNO, CALIFORNIA, AT AN UNKNOWN TIME. NO FLIGHT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED. A FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION (FAA) INSPECTOR INTERVIEWED THE PILOT. THE PILOT STATED THAT HE WAS LANDING TO THE SOUTH WITH A CROSSWIND. ON INITIAL TOUCHDOWN, THE PILOT DID NOT BELIEVE HE WOULD HAVE ENOUGH RUNWAY TO SAFELY STOP THE AIRPLANE. HE ADDED FULL POWER, INITIATED A GO-AROUND, AND THE AIRPLANE DEPARTED THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT REDUCED THE POWER AND WENT INTO A BROCCOLI FIELD. (-23) PILOT LOST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT AFTER LANDING IN STRONG GUSTY CROSSWIND.

## 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 LAX02LA103](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA103), Mar 7, 2002: Piper PA-28R-180 (N800RC), Coalinga, CA, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's failure to maintain directional control and his inadequate compensation for the wind conditions. The crosswind was a contributing factor.

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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