- Date
- June 29, 1991, 12:10 local (16:10 UTC)
- Place
- Berlin, MD
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Other
- Aircraft
- N763WMPiper J5
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 13, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910629025079A
- Case key
- 11627
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 maintain adeqate airspeed which caused the airplane to stall.
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 airplane was on a banner towing flight when it crashed during a banner pickup attempt. Witnesses reported the pilot tookoff from the airfield, circled the field and then descended toward the banner staging area which was at about midfield. According to a witness, the banner was picked up and the airplane climbed. It appeared the airplane would not outclimb a wooded area at the end of the airfield. The banner dropped from the airplane and soon afterwards the airplane descended in a spin to the ground. The examination of the airplane did not disclose evidence of mechanical failure nor evidence of banner entanglement with the rudder or elevator.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N763WM
- Reported as
- Piper J5
- Category
- Airplane
- Engine
- Unknown UNKNOWN, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 91
- Operator
- Ocena Aerial Ads, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Ocean Aerial Ads, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 2, 2000
- Airport
- Private
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
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Seat
- Front
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 800 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 260° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 93 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SBY, 999 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.