- Date
- September 5, 1992, 00:30 local (04:30 UTC)
- Place
- Windham, CT
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N3751RPiper PA-28-180
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report June 30, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920905035429A
- Case key
- 11839
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 IFR operation. Contributing was the pilot's instrument flight inexperience.
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 pilot was on his second try at executing the localizer 27 approach at Windham airport (elevation; 247 feet). He reported that he was too high on the first try, so he did a missed approach. The pilot stated that on his second try he crossed the final approach fix at the published altitude and then descended to the miniminum descent altitude: 1020 feet. At 1100 feet, he asked the passenger to look for ground lights. Shortly afterwards the airplane crashed when it struck trees. The accident site was on the localizer course inbound, 3.8 DME miles from the airport. Examination of the airplane, including the altimeter, did not disclose evidence of mechanical malfunction. The pilot had 29 hours of night flight time and 3 hours of actual instrument flight time. He obtained an instrument rating just over a month before the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3751R
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-5811
- Airframe hours
- 4,150
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Windham Aviation Inc.
- Registered owner
- Windham Aviation Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 8, 1992
- Departed
- BID · Block Island, RI
- Flight plan
- IFR
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
- 22
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 197 total · 93 in this make and model · 158 as pilot in command · 40 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 190° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 300 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 59 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- BDL, 26 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.