- Date
- July 1, 1998, 11:30 local (15:30 UTC)
- Place
- Homestead, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4331MPiper PA-28-161
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 8, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19980701015499A
- Case key
- 4003
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 improper flare that resulted in a hard landing and porpoise, and his improper recovery from the bounced landing.
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
According to the pilot, he entered a left downwind for runway 36. He touched down hard on the first landing, and the airplane bounced into the air. The pilot then pulled back on the controls, and the airplane sank, collided with the runway, and bounced a second time. The nose gear collapsed, and the propeller struck the ground on the second bounce. The airplane touched down for a third time and veered off the left side of the runway. According to the FAA, the airplane had wing damage and cracked engine mounts. The inspector stated the airplane made too steep of an approach which led him to begin bouncing down the runway. The pilot had 37 hours of total flying time.
Factual narrative
On July 1, 1998, at 1130 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28-161, N4331M, executed a hard landing at Homestead General Aviation Airport, Homestead, Florida. The solo, instructional flight was operated by the student pilot under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 and visual flight rules. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. There was no flight plan filed. The airplane was substantially damaged, and the pilot was not injured. The flight departed Kendall-Tamiami Airport, Miami, Florida at 1115.
According to the pilot, he entered a left downwind for runway 36. He touched down hard on the first landing, and the airplane bounced into the air. The pilot then pulled back on the controls, and the airplane sank, collided with the runway, and bounced a second time. The nose gear collapsed, and the propeller struck the ground on the second bounce. The airplane touched down for a third time and veered off the left side of the runway.
According to the FAA, the airplane has wing damage and cracked engine mounts. The inspector stated the airplane made too steep of an approach which led him to begin bouncing down the runway. He also stated the pilot had only 37 hours of total time.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4331M
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-161
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-8416028
- Airframe hours
- 6,637
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D36, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- International Flight Center
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · April 18, 1998
- Departed
- TMB · Tamiami, FL
- Destination
- X51
- Airport
- X51 · Homestead General Av., runway 36, 4,909 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
- 32
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 37 total · 37 in this make and model · 31 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 150° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 91 °F, dew point 75 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MIA, 20 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.