# Accident 20021204033099A: Piper PA28140, Phelan, CA, December 4, 2002 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: December 4, 2002, 12:13 local time - Place: Phelan, CA - Damage: Destroyed - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 34.5000° N, 117.5667° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.5000&lon=-117.5667&mi=10 - Aircraft: N15969, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N15969-2003-06-16) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Piper PA-28-140 (registry code 7102802, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28-140) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: PIPER PA28140 - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 1 - Pilot certificates: Student - NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX03FA045](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX03FA045) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20021204033099A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) THE STUDENT PILOT APPEARED TO LOSE CONTROL OF THE AIRPLANE AND CRASH VERTICALLY INTO AN UNOCCUPIED AREA OF THE DESERT. WITNESSES SAID THAT THEY HEARD A LOUD ENGINE NOISE AND OBSERVED THE AIRPLANE POINTED NOSE DOWN, SPIRALING TO THE GROUND, JUST BEFORE THEY HEARD IT IMPACT THE GROUND. THERE WAS AN ODOR OF FUEL AT THE ACCIDENT SITE. BUT, THERE WAS NO FIRE. (.19)ON DECEMBER 4, 2002, ABOUT 1210 PACIFIC STANDARD TIME, A PIPER PA-28-140, N15969, IMPACTED DESERT TERRAIN FOLLOWING A LOSS OF CONTROL WHILE MANEUVERING NEAR PHELAN, CALIFORNIA. THE AIRPLANE WAS OPERATED BY MIDFIELD AVIATION, AND RENTED BY THE STUDENT PILOT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91. THE AIRPLANE WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. THE STUDENT PILOT, THE SOLE OCCUPANT, WAS FATALLY INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE LOCAL AREA INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT, AND NO FLIGHT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED. THE FLIGHT DEPARTED THE APPLE VALLEY AIRPORT (APV), APPLE VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, AT AN UNDETERMINED TIME. THE FLIGHT WAS SCHEDULED TO TERMINATE AT APV.THE ACCIDENT SITE WAS SITUATED IN THE DESERT IN A SPARSELY POPULATED RESIDENTIAL AREA NORTHWEST OF PHELAN. THE MAIN WRECKAGE AREA DISTRIBUTION, INCLUDING AIR PLANE DEBRIS AND GROUND IMPRESSIONS, WERE CONTAINED IN A LINEAR DISTRIBUTION OFF THE LEFT WING, APPROXIMATELY 40 FEET IN LENGTH. THE FIRST IDENTIFIED POINT OF CONTACT (IPC) WAS A RIGHT WING GROUND IMPRESSION. THE GROUND IMPRESSION WAS THE APPROXIMATE LENGTH OF THE WING WITH AN INTACT GREEN LENS CAP FOUND TOWARDS THE TIP OF THE IMPRESSION. THE AIRPLANE CAME TO REST ABOUT 5 FEET FROM THE IPC ON A SOUTHEASTERLY HEADING.ACCORDING TO PERSONNEL AT THE FLIGHT SCHOOL, THE STUDENT PILOT HAD RENTED THE AIRPLANE FOR TWO FLIGHTS; ONE IN THE MORNING, AND ONE IN THE AFTERNOON. THEY STATED THAT THE MORNING FLIGHT WAS TO PRACTICE MANEUVERS IN PREPARATION FOR HIS PRIVATE PILOT CHECK RIDE. FLIGHT SCHOOL PERSONNEL DID NOT KNOW WHAT THE AFTERNOON FLIGHT WAS FOR. ACCORDING TO GROUND WITNESS WHO WERE 1/4 MILE SOUTHWEST OF THE ACCIDENT SITE, THE AIRPLANE WAS ABOUT 500 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND. BOTH WITNESSES HEARD A LOUD ENGINE NOISE AND LOOKED TOWARDS THE SKY. THEY SAW THE ACCIDENT AIRPLANE IN A NOSE-DOWN SPIRAL. THE WITNESSES DID NOT SEE THE AIRPLANE CONTACT THE GROUND DUE TO HIGH VEGETATION IN THE AREA. THEY CALLED 911, AND THEN WENT TO SEE IF THEY COULD HELP THE PILOT. ## 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 LAX03FA045](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX03FA045), Dec 4, 2002: Piper PA-28-140 (N15969), Phelan, CA, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: the student pilot's failure to maintain an adequate airspeed while maneuvering that lead to a stall spin and impact with flat desert terrain. ## Other reports on N15969 (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Accident 19791029029129A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19791029029129A), Oct 29, 1979: Piper PA28140 (N15969), Huntington Beac, CA, Substantial damage. Attempted severe crosswind landing. Drifted off runway. Tried go-around. Lost control. Hit parked aircraft. 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.