# Accident 20090826051059A: Piper PA-15, Lakeview, MI, August 26, 2009

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 26, 2009, 18:50 local time
- Place: Lakeview, MI
- Airport: Lakeview-Griffith Field
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 43.4522° N, 85.2647° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=43.4522&lon=-85.2647&mi=10
- Aircraft: N4585H, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N4585H-2014-12-16) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-15 (registry code 7101502, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-15) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-145B series (registry code 41502, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-145b-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-15
- Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-145B SERIES
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Student
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN09LA549](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN09LA549) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20090826051059A

## Narrative

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

THE STUDENT PILOT, MR. KEVIN M. MALARNEY HAD JUST DEPARTED THE LAKEVIEW AIRPORT AND WAS BELIEVED TO BE PRACTICING TAKEOFFS AND LANDINGS.  ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ WHO WORKS AT THE LAKEVIEW AIRPORT, STATED TO THE MICHIGAN STATE POLICE INVESTIGATING THE ACCIDENT, THAT MR. MALARNEY'S SON, WHO IS ALSO A STUDENT PILOT, HAD JUST FINISHED A SOLO FLIGHT AND THAT MR. MALARNEY THEN USED THE SAME AIRCRAFT AND HAD JUST DEPARTED THE AIRPORT FOR THE PURPOSE OF PRACTICING TAKEOFFS AND LANDINGS HIMSELF.AFTER DEPARTING THE AIRPORT ON RUNWAY 09, AT APPROXIMATELY 1 MILE NORTHEAST OF THE AIRPORT, THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED BY A WITNESS, ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^, WHO TOLD THE MICHIGAN STATE POLICE THAT HE OBSERVED THE AIRCRAFT NOSE DIVE, AS IF IT WAS CROP DUSTING AND THEN SAW FLAMES FROM THE CRASH.  THE PILOT RECIEVED FATAL INJURIES AS A RESULT OF THE ACCIDENT.A SIGNED STATEMENT FROM MR. MALARNEY'S INSTRUCTOR, MR. VERN JOHNSON OF LAKEVIEW, MI, STATES THAT AFTER INSTRUCTING MR. MALARNEY FROM JULY 6, 2009 AND SHORTLY AFTER AUTHORIZING HIM TO CONDUCT SOLO FLIGHT ON AUGUST 8, 2009 THAT HE INFORMED MR. MALARNEY THAT HE WOULD NOT PROVIDE HIM ANY FURTHER INSTRUCTION BECAUSE HE WAS NOT FOLLOWING MR. JOHNSON'S INSTRUCTIONS AND WAS OBSERVED BY MR. JOHNSON PERFORMING MAINTENANCE ON HIS AIRCRAFT AND WAS NOT ALLOWED TO DO SO.  INSPECTOR ELLIOTT LATER LEARNED THAT MR. MALARNEY HAD REMOVED AND CLEANED THE FUEL SCREEN BY HIMSELF WITHOUT AN APPROPRIATELY RATED MECHANIC TO OVERSEE AND/OR PERFORM THE WORK.THE AIRCRAFT HAD A CURRENT ANNUAL INSPECTION AND THERE IS NO EVIDENCE THAT A MECHANICAL FAILURE PRECEDED THE ACCIDENT.  THE IMPACT FORCES AND POST CRASH FIRE PREVENTED A CONCLUSIVE POST CRASH INVESTIGATION.GIVEN THE MECHANICAL WORK MR. MALARNEY WAS OBSERVED DOING, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THE AIRCRAFT WAS NOT AIRWORTHY AND THAT WORK PERFORMED BY MR. MALARNEY COULD HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE ACCIDENT.  IN ADDITION THE EYEWITNESS ACCOUNT OF THE AIRCRAFT NOSE DIVE AS IF IT WAS CROP DUSTING, IS AN INDICATION THAT MR. MALARNEY MAY HAVE BEEN PERFORMING AN EXAGGERATED MANEUVER THAT EXCEEDED HIS SKILL LEVEL.

## 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 CEN09LA549](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN09LA549), Aug 26, 2009: Piper PA-15 (N4585H), Lakeview, MI, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane.

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.