- Date
- September 6, 1993, 11:40 local (15:40 UTC)
- Place
- Point Pleasant, WV
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N2116BSmyth Sidewinder
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 25, 1994
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19930906041859A
- Case key
- 8808
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 a proper glidepath.
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 reported that on a short final approach the airplane struck a deer. The pilot said that the airplane nosed down and then the gear touched down short of the runway. The nose gear collapsed and the airplane skidded up onto the runway and came to rest. A post impact ground fire consumed the airplane. Examination of the accident site revealed the airplane touched down about 30 feet short of the runway.
Factual narrative
On Monday, September 6, 1993, at 1140 eastern daylight time, a home built Smith Sidewinder, N2116B, owned, operated, and piloted by John J. Jewett of Wheelersburg, Ohio, struck a deer on short final for runway 25 at the Point Pleasant Airport, Point Pleasant, West Virginia, and subsequently landed short of the runway. The airplane was destroyed by a ground fire. The pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The cross country flight originated from Minford, Ohio, and was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
The pilot stated, "On short final I saw two deer 125 to 150 ft to the right of the runway. After they disappeared from view under the right wing I thought I was past them. They evidently spooked and started to run. While in ground-effect (approx 6-10 ft AGL) the nose of the aircraft pitched downward rapidly as I felt a slight bump. A quick rearward pull on the 'stick' almost got a full recovery. The main wheels touched the dirt lightly but the nosewheel dug into the dirt 12 ft short of the blacktop. It [the nosewheel] broke off, and the plane slid 310 ft. to a stop." The pilot stated that about two minutes after the airplane came to rest, he saw smoke coming from the airplane. He stated that the airplane was "slowly" consumed by fire.
Examination of the accident site revealed ground marks about 30 feet before the approach end of runway 25. (See attached diagram). The ground marks went up onto the runway and continued down the runway about 340 feet where they came to rest at the airplane wreckage. The airplane was consumed by a post-impact ground fire. No injured deer was found on or near the airport.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2116B
- Reported as
- Smyth Sidewinder
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 8741
- Airframe hours
- 90
- Engine
- Lycoming O-290-D, 125 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- John Jewett
- Registered owner
- John J. Jewett
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 20, 1993 · 15 hours before
- Departed
- PMH · Minford, OH
- Airport
- 3I2 · Point Pleasant, runway 25, 4,000 × 75 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
- 48
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 635 total · 87 in this make and model · 610 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 220° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PKB, 40 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.