- Date
- February 27, 2010, 11:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Maple Lake, MN
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N5418LGrumman American AA-5
- Defining event
- Approach-VFR pattern final: Controlled flight into terr/obj (CFIT)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 12, 2010
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20100227028889A
- Case key
- 75484
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 glide path during a simulated forced landing and the flight instructor's delayed remedial action to execute a go-around.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot attempted a simulated forced landing at the airport by entering the traffic pattern for a landing on runway 28 during an instructional flight. During final approach, the pilot realized that the airplane was not going to reach the runway and attempted a go-around. The airplane impacted the ground about 700 feet short of the runway, resulting in substantial damage to the structure underlying the nose landing gear. The pilot and flight instructor were uninjured. The airplane had not been registered since its purchase by the current owner.
Factual narrative
The pilot attempted a simulated forced landing at the airport by entering the traffic pattern for a landing on runway 28 (2,796 feet by 60 feet, asphalt) during an instructional flight. During final approach, the pilot realized the airplane was not going to reach the runway and attempted a go-around. The airplane impacted the ground about 700 feet short of the runway resulting in substantial damage to the airplane structure underlying the nose landing gear. The pilot and flight instructor were uninjured. The airplane had not been registered since its purchase by the current aircraft owner. There was no report made of an incident/accident to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) or Federal Aviation Administration until March 3, 2010, at which time the pilot contacted the NTSB.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5418L
- Reported as
- Grumman American AA-5
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- AA5-0398
- Airframe hours
- 2,298
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Pilot
- Registered owner
- Unregistered
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 28, 2009
- Departed
- CFE · Buffalo, MN
- Destination
- MGG · Maple Lake, MN
- Airport
- MGG · Maple Lake Municipal Airport, runway 28, 2,796 × 60 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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 34
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 170 total · 11 in this make and model
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 28
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 3,680 total · 1 in this make and model · 160 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on May 26, 2010, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 783 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.