# Accident 20030905030479A: Piper PA28140, Somerville, NJ, September 5, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 5, 2003, 16:15 local time
- Place: Somerville, NJ
- Airport: Somerset Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Roll-Out (Fixed Wing)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 40.6258° N, 74.6700° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.6258&lon=-74.6700&mi=10
- Aircraft: N6183J, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N6183J-2013-04-26) (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
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Student
- Pilot flight hours: 30 total, 30 in this make and model, 20 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB NYC03LA195](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03LA195) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030905030479A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON SEPT. 5, 2003, STUDENT PILOT FRANK WARDROP WAS ON A LOCAL SOLO FLIGHT FROM SOMERSET AIRPORT (SMQ). AFTER ENTERING A LEFT DOWNWIND FOR RUNWAY 30 AT SMQ, PILOT HEARD A HELICOPTER CALL A 5-MILE RIGHT BASE FOR LANDING. STUDENT PILOT CONTINUED DOWNWIND AND ENTERED LEFT BASE THEN FINAL LEG WITH THE HELICOPTER LANDING TO RIGHT SIDE OF RUNWAY 30 APPROXIMATELY 1/3 OF THE WAY DOWN THE RUNWAY ON PARALLEL TAXIWAY AHEAD OF HIS AIRCRAFT. HE SAID HE EXPERIENCED A LOT OF TURBULENCE ABOUT 100 FEET OVER TREES ON SHORT FINAL AND ATTEMPTED TO GO AROUND. PILOT WAS TOO INEXPERIENCED TO CONTROL AIRCRAFT IN TURBULENCE AND AIRCRAFT CAME UP ON RIGHT WING ABOUT 75 DEGREES, PIVOTED TO THE RIGHT, THEN IMPACTED THE GROUND IN A NOSE LOW ATTITUDE, TEARING OFF THE PROP, SPINNING THE AIRCRAFT AROUND AND CAUSING RIGHT WING TO BREAK OFF, THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT TO COLLAPSE, THE LEFT WING TO CRUMPLE. ACCORDING TO A WITNESS, THE CO-PILOT OF THE HELICOPTER THAT LANDED IN FRONT OF THE AIRCRAFT, "THE AIRCRAFT SPUN CLOCKWISE OFF THE RUNWAY AND ALSO ENDED UP ON THE GRASS ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT WAS MOVING ABOUT THE COCKPIT AS PEOPLE APPROACHED TO HELP."

## 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 NYC03LA195](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC03LA195), Sep 5, 2003: Piper PA-28-140 (N6183J), Somerville, NJ, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's delay in executing a go-around, which resulted in an encounter with wake turbulence from a helicopter. A factor in the accident was the wake turbulence.

## Other reports on N6183J (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Accident 19910905038429A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19910905038429A), Sep 5, 1991: Piper PA28140 (N6183J), Somerville, NJ, Substantial damage. Lost oil pressure during private pilot checkride. Examiner took over on forced landing. Oil cooler oil line broken

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.