- Date
- November 8, 1991, 09:30 local (13:30 UTC)
- Place
- Anchorage, AK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N4285HPiper PA-14
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 5, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19911108050169A
- Case key
- 5672
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's loss of control during final approach when his attention was diverted to trying to operate the vernier throttle. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's lack of familiarity with the aircraft and his failure to maintain directional control of the airplane on the ground.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The private pilot stated that, just before touchdown, he made an unsuccessful attempt to manipulate the vernier type throttle in order to slow his high descent rate. The airplane subsequently landed hard, bounced back into the air, stalled, and collided with two parked airplanes. The pilot had just bought the airplane and had only about 2 hours in this type airplane. He said he was not familiar with the vernier type throttle which had been illegally installed in the airplane sometime before he bought it.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4285H
- Reported as
- Piper PA-14
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 14-90
- Airframe hours
- 2,099
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Bennett, Rex D.
- Registered owner
- Phipps, James A.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 22, 1989 · 130 hours before
- Departed
- ENA · Kenai, AK
- Destination
- NONE · Anchorage, AK
- Airport
- AK12 · Flying Crown, runway 31, 1,100 × 60 ft, gravel
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 52
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Expired
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,625 total · 2 in this make and model · 1,600 as pilot in command · 24 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 30 °F, dew point 18 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.