BFO93LA168

NTSB accident investigation · Cessna 170B · Gilbertsville, KY · September 10, 1993

Accident · Serious injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
September 10, 1993, 14:00 local (18:00 UTC)
Place
Gilbertsville, KY
Injuries
1 serious, 1 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N4473BCessna 170B
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report August 17, 1994
Report
Approved by Office Director
FAA report
19930910033829A
Case key
8815

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

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Probable cause

The pilot's inadequate compensation for wind conditions, which resulted in a loss of directional control. The crosswind was a related factor.

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.

Loss of control - on ground/waterLanding - flare/touchdown
Weather condition - crosswindFactor
Compensation for wind conditions - inadequatePilot in commandCause
Directional control - not maintainedPilot in commandCause
Ground loop/swerve - uncontrolledPilot in command
On ground/water collision with objectLanding
Object - aircraft parked/standing

Analysis

The pilot of a Cessna 170B, N4473B, landed on runway 27 with a right crosswind. He said that during the flare, the wind blew the plane to the left. During touchdown, its left wing hit the runway & the plane angled to the left, crossed a parallel taxiway, entered a ramp area, and hit a parked Piper PA-28, N6947J. The Cessna's prop severed the left wing of the PA-28, outboard of the left gear. No pre-accident mechanical problem was evident. About 23 miles west at paducah, KY, the 1550 EDT weather was in part: 1500 ft scattered, 15 mi visibility, wind from 350 deg at 11 KTS.

Factual narrative

On Friday, September 10, 1993, at approximately 1545 eastern daylight time (edt), a Cessna 170B, N4473B, owned and operated by Gerald and Genevee Broshar of Anderson, Indiana, went off the runway and collided with a parked Piper PA-28, N6947J, as the Cessna pilot was landing at the Kentucky Dam State Park Airport, Gilbertsville, Kentucky. Both airplanes were substantially damaged. The passenger was seriously injured with a broken arm, but the pilot received no significant injury. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. No flight plan was filed, nor was one required. The flight was conducted in accordance with 14 CFR 91.

The purpose of the flight was for the pilot and passenger to go to a Cessna 170 fly-in. During a landing on runway 27, the airplane encountered a crosswind from the north and began to drift to the left. It then angled off the left side of the runway, crossed a parallel taxiway, and subsequently collided with a parked aircraft on a parking ramp. The parked aircraft was about 330 ft from the runway.

During impact, the propeller of the Cessna 170 contacted the left wing of the Piper PA-28. The left wing of the Piper was severed just outboard of the landing gear and was destroyed. The propeller of the Cessna was severly damaged with nicks and gouges along the leading edges of the blades. The engine cowling of the Cessna was damaged around the lower circumference of the engine. Also, the underside of the Cessna's left wing tip and aileron were damaged. This damage matched marks on the runway surface, where the left wing appeared to have made contact.

The pilot reported that when he was ready to flare for a landing on runway 27, a crosswind from the north blew the airplane to the left. He also noted that there were trees along the north side of the runway. At Paducah, Kentucky, the 1550 EDT weather was in part: 1500 feet scattered, 7 miles visibility, wind from 350 degrees at 11 kts, temperature 76 degrees, dew point 47 degrees, altimiter 30.11" Hg.

No pre-accident mechanical problem of the Cessna 170 was evident.

Aircraft

Registration
N4473B
Reported as
Cessna 170B
Category
Airplane
Serial number
26817
Engine
Continental O-300-A, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Operator
Gerald & Genevee Broshar
Registered owner
Gerald & Genevee Broshar
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · May 22, 1993 · 24 hours before
Departed
AID · Anderson, IN
Destination
M34
Airport
M34 · Kentucky Dam State Park, runway 27, 4,000 × 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
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
Medical
Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
Seat
Left
Flight hours
2,144 total · 1,500 in this make and model · 25 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
350° at 11 knots
Visibility
7 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
None
Temperature
75 °F, dew point 46 °F
Altimeter
30.00 inHg
Observed at
PAH, 23 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.