- Date
- May 5, 1991, 19:30 local (23:30 UTC)
- Place
- Odessa, DE
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N9285Piper PA-38-112
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 8, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 11624
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 failure to recover from a stall. Contributing was an intentional stall of the aircraft, pilot inexpereince and inadequate altitude.
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
A witness said they saw the acft flying in the area for about 5 to 10 minutes doing a maneuver in which the acft banked and descended with engine power increasing during the descent. The witnesses said this occurred three times with the accident occuring the third time. He said the acft was at low altitude during the maneuver. The acft crashed in a swamp in a nose down attitude. The examination of the acft did not disclose evidence of mechanical malfunction. The investigation revealed the student plt failed his private pilot test flight about a week earlier. According to FAA records, during the test he failed all flight phases. The accident occurred on his second flight since the test, neither of which involved dual instruction with his flight instructor.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9285
- Reported as
- Piper PA-38-112
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 78A0320
- Airframe hours
- 7,368
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-L2C, 112 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Dawn Aeronautics, Inc
- Registered owner
- Dawn Aeronautics, Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 2, 1991 · 14 hours before
- Departed
- ILG · Wilmington, DE
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 36
- Certificate
- Student
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 97 total · 71 in this make and model · 33 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 140° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 6,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 43 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ILG, 15 nm away