20150816016729I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Piper PA-12 · Chittenden, VT · August 16, 2015

Date: August 16, 2015 · 11:35 local
Place: Chittenden, VT
Airport: Chittenden Reservoir
Phase of flight: Landing: Approach
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N4396M
Reported as: Piper PA-12
Reported engine: Lycoming 0-235 series
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours: 1,450 total7 in this make and model1 in the last 90 days

N4396MRegistration cancelled Sep 13, 2018 · Piper PA-12S/N 12-3335 · Built 1947 Airframe modelPiper PA-12 Engine modelLycoming 0-235 series4 cycle

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

The pilot reported he flared the aircraft too high and landed very hard. The forward float fittings / struts failed and allowed the nose of the aircraft to contact the water. This combined with the forward motion of the aircraft caused the nose to submerge and the aircraft to turn upside down in the water. Both the pilot and the passenger were able to egress with no injuries and were taken to shore by recreational boaters.

As the FAA filed it

THE PILOT REPORTED HE FLARED THE AIRCRAFT TOO HIGH AND LANDED VERY HARD. THE FORWARD FLOAT FITTINGS / STRUTS FAILED AND ALLOWED THE NOSE OF THE AIRCRAFT TO CONTACT THE WATER. THIS COMBINED WITH THE FORWARD MOTION OF THE AIRCRAFT CAUSED THE NOSE TO SUBMERGE AND THE AIRCRAFT TO TURN UPSIDE DOWN IN THE WATER. BOTH THE PILOT AND THE PASSENGER WERE ABLE TO EGRESS WITH NO INJURIES AND WERE TAKEN TO SHORE BY RECREATIONAL BOATERS.