# Accident 20140906019619A: Piper PA-25-235, Warner Springs, CA, September 6, 2014

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 6, 2014, 12:06 local time
- Place: Warner Springs, CA
- Airport: Warner Springs
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 33.2844° N, 116.6697° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.2844&lon=-116.6697&mi=10
- Aircraft: N7117Z, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N7117Z-2020-02-28) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-25-235 (registry code 7102504, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-25-235) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-540 series (registry code 41532, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-540-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-25-235
- Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-540 SERIES
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 5,307 total, 264 in this make and model, 24 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR14LA367](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR14LA367) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20140906019619A

## Narrative

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

ON SEPTEMBER 6, 2014, ABOUT 1202 PST, A PIPER PA25-235, N7117Z, COLLIDED WITH TERRAIN WHILE PERFORMING GLIDER TOW OPERATIONS AT WARNER SPRINGS GLIDERPORT, WARNER SPRINGS CALIFORNIA. THE AIRPLANE WAS REGISTERED TO, AND OPERATED BY SKY SAILING, INC, UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PART 91.THE AIRPLANE PILOT SUSTAINED SERIOUS INJURIES AND THE AIRPLANE WAS DESTROYD DURING THE ACCIDENT SEQUENCE. THE LOCAL FLIGHT DEPARTED WARNER SPRINGS ABOUT 1200 WITH A SCHWEIZER SGS 2-33A GLIDER, N7547 IN TOW. TWO WITNESSES PROVIDED CORROBORATING STATEMENTS OF THE ACCIDENT SEQUENCE. BOTH REPORTED THAT THE INITIAL TAKEOFF APPEARED NORMAL UNTIL THE FIRST CROSSWIND TURN WHEN THE GLIDER SWUNG OUT OF POSITION, HIGH AND TO THE RIGHT. THE TOW PLANE THEN PITCHED NOSE DOWN AND YAWED TO THE LEFT BEFORE IMPACTING THE GROUND.

## 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 WPR14LA367](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR14LA367), Sep 6, 2014: Piper PA 25-235 (N7117Z), Warner Springs, CA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The glider pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the initial climb while being towed, which led to the tow plane's unstable flight and its subsequent aerodynamic stall. Contributing…

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.