# Accident 20030412011269A: Piper PA28180, Conesus, NY, April 12, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 12, 2003, 15:00 local time
- Place: Conesus, NY
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Maneuver
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 42.6811° N, 77.6158° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.6811&lon=-77.6158&mi=10
- Aircraft: N8985J, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N8985J-2014-11-20) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-28-180 (registry code 7102808, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28-180) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming O&VO-360 series (registry code 41514, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-o-vo-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA28180
- Reported engine: LYC O360A3A
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 3
- Pilot flight hours: 1,100 total, 4 in this make and model, 85 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC03FA082](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03FA082) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030412011269A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON SATURDAY, APRIL 12, 2002 AT 1600 EDT, A PIPER PA-28-180, N8985J, COLLIDED WITH TERRAIN IN A WOODED AREA NEAR CONESUS, NY. THE FLIGHT WAS CONDUCTED UNDER PART 91 WITH NO FLIGHT PLAN FILED. ACCORDING TO AN INTERVIEW WITH MEMBERS OF THE DANSVILLE FLYING CLUB, OWNERS OF THE AIRCRAFT, A CFI SEATED IN THE RIGHT FRONT SEAT WAS ADMINISTERING AN AIRCRAFT CHECKOUT TO A CLUB MEMBER SEATED IN THE LEFT FRONT SEAT. A PASSENGER WAS ALSO SEATED IN THE REAR OF THE AIRCRAFT. PRELIMINARY UNVERIFIED RADAR DATA OBTAINED FROM THE ROCHESTER ATCT FACILITY INDICATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT APPEARED TO BEGIN A MANEUVER AT 3,400' MSL, FOLLOWED BY A RAPID DESCENT TO 1,800' MSL IN 19 SECONDS. THE GROUND ELEVATION IS 1,825' MSL. ALL THREE OCCUPANTS WERE FATALLY INJURED AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED. ACCORDING TO WITNESSES AT THE SCENE OF IMPACT, THE AIRCRAFT WAS SEEN PITCHING UP, FOLLOWED BY THE LEFT WING DROPPING AND THE AIRCRAFT "SPIRALING." A POST-ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION PERFORMED BY THE NTSB, LYCOMING AND PIPER INDICATED THAT THERE WERE NO AIRWORTHINESS ISSUES INVOLVED.

## 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 NYC03FA082](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03FA082), Apr 12, 2003: Piper PA-28-180 (N8985J), Conesus, NY, destroyed, 3 fatal. Probable cause: The flight instructor's failure to maintain adequate airspeed which resulted in an inadvertent spin.

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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