# Incident 20210122001219I: Piper PA-32-260, Mackinac Island, MI, January 22, 2021

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: January 22, 2021, 15:00 local time
- Place: Mackinac Island, MI
- Airport: Mackinac Island
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Rollout
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Operator: ECEA
- Location: 45.8650° N, 84.6371° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at MACKINAC ISLAND (MCD), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=45.8650&lon=-84.6371&mi=10
- Aircraft: N7122J, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N7122J) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-32-260 (registry code 7103206, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-32-260) (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-32-260
- Reported engine: LYCOMING 0-540 SERIES
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 1,445 total, 3 in this make and model, 33 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20210122001219I

## Narrative

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

ON OR ABOUT JANUARY 22, 2021, AT APPROXIMATELY 1500 EDT, A 1973 PIPER PA-32-260, A FIXED-WING SINGLE-ENGINE AIRPLANE BEARING THE REGISTRATION OF N7122J (SN: 32-7300032), SUSTAINED MINOR DAMAGE AFTER STRIKING AN UNKNOWN OBJECT DURING LANDING ROLL AT MACKINAC ISLAND AIRPORT (KMCD) IN MACKINAC ISLAND, MI.   ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. IS THE REGISTERED OWNER OF N7122J.  ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^WAS THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND (PIC) OF N7122J. HE STATED THAT THE FLIGHT WAS A TITLE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (14 CFR) PART 135 PIC CHECK RIDE (14 CFR 135.293) WITH PART 135 CERTIFICATE HOLDER ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^).  ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ WAS ALSO ONBOARD N7122J AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT.  ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ IS AN AUTHORIZED CHECK PILOT FOR ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ AND WAS EVALUATING ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ COMPETENCY TO ACT AS PIC UNDER PART 135.

ACCORDING TO THE PIC AND ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^, THE FLIGHT WAS BEING CONDUCTED UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91.  VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED, AND THE FOLLOWING IS THE WEATHER OBSERVATION FROM KMCD AT THE APPROXIMATE TIME OF THE INCIDENT:

METAR KMCD 221955Z AUTO 31012G22KT 280V340 7SM SCT023 BKN029 BKN035 M08/M15 A2997 RMK AO2 T10851148=

THE PIC STATES THAT HE WAS ON THE LEFT DOWNWIND, APPROXIMATELY ABEAM THE NUMBERS FOR RUNWAY 26 AT KMCD, WHEN ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ SIMULATED AN ENGINE FAILURE BY REDUCING THE AIRCRAFT'S THROTTLE.   THE PIC STATED THAT HE ALIGNED THE PLANE WITH RUNWAY 26 AND MADE A SUCCESSFUL LANDING.  HOWEVER, ON THE LANDING ROLLOUT, THE PIC HAD DIFFICULTY MAINTAINING DIRECTIONAL CONTROL, EVEN WITH FULL FLIGHT CONTROL DEFLECTION. THE PIC STATED THAT THE PLANE DRIFTED TO THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE RUNWAY SURFACE AND INTO AN UNPLOWED AREA.  THE PIC INDICATED THAT THE GUSTY WINDS FROM THE NORTHWEST AND THE ICE-COVERED RUNWAY CONTRIBUTED TO THE LACK OF DIRECTIONAL CONTROL.

AS THE AIRCRAFT WAS TAXIING INTO POSITION TO TAKEOFF, ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ STATED THAT THE PIC COMMENTED THAT HE THOUGHT HE MIGHT HAVE STRUCK A RUNWAY LIGHT.  ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ DID NOT BELIEVE THE PLANE HIT THE RUNWAY LIGHT BECAUSE HE DID NOT FEEL ANYTHING CONSISTENT WITH THE AIRCRAFT STRIKING AN OBJECT.   THE PIC AND ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ BOTH STATED THAT THEY OBSERVED A BROKEN RUNWAY LIGHT ON THE AIRPORT SURFACE DURING THE TAKEOFF ROLL.  THE TAKEOFF CONTINUED, AND THE PIC FLEW THE AIRCRAFT TO MACKINAC COUNTY AIRPORT (83D), WHERE THE FLIGHT ENDED.  UPON EXITING THE PLANE AT 83D, THE PIC AND ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ NOTED MINOR DAMAGE TO THE AIRCRAFT'S HORIZONTAL STABILATOR'S LEFT SIDE.

## Other reports on N7122J (2)

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

- [Accident 20180226009609A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20180226009609A), Feb 26, 2018: Piper PA-32-260 (N7122J), Mackinac Island, MI, Substantial damage. On February 26, 2018 at approximately 7:45 am eastern standard time, a PA-32-260 aircraft, N571UJ, registered to and operated by an on demand air taxi service,…
- [Incident 20140217001009I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20140217001009I), Feb 17, 2014: Piper PA-32-260 (N7122J), St. Ignace, MI, No damage. The pilot departed rwy 8 at mcd for 83D(St. Ignace, MI ). On the downwind departure, the engine quit suddenly. The pilot stated all instruments were in the…

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.
