CEN14LA432

NTSB accident investigation · Cessna 188 - Undesignat · Columbus, NM · August 13, 2014

Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
August 13, 2014, 09:30 local (15:30 UTC)
Place
Columbus, NM
Injuries
1 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Initial climb
Aircraft
N9849VCessna 188 - Undesignat
Defining event
Initial climb: Loss of control in flight
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report February 11, 2015
Report
Approved by Office Director
NTSB office
Central Region
Parties
Federal Aviation Administration; ABQ FSDO
FAA report
20140813014199A
Case key
89884

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 release the load of agricultural product before the landing approach and his failure to maintain aircraft control during an initial climb after an aborted landing, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and experiencing an aerodynamic stall.

Findings · 4

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.

Performance/control parameters: angle of attackAircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Capability exceededCessna 188: 2 casesAll aircraft: 990 casesProbable cause
Performance/control parameters: configurationAircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Incorrect use/operationCessna 188: 1 caseAll aircraft: 80 casesProbable cause
Action: lack of actionPersonnel issues › Action/decision · PilotCessna 188: 1 caseAll aircraft: 792 casesProbable cause
Use of equip/info: aircraft controlPersonnel issues › Task performance · PilotCessna 188: 3 casesAll aircraft: 9,295 casesProbable cause

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 of the agricultural airplane attempted an aborted landing without releasing the load of agricultural applicant, which had not been dispensed due to a failure of the spray system. During the initial climb after the aborted landing, the airplane stalled and impacted terrain. The pilot's safety recommendation was: "There is a dump lever....use it !!!" The pilot did not have a current flight review nor did he hold an aircraft operator certificate for agricultural operations.

Factual narrative

On August 13, 2014, at 0930 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 188, N9849V, impacted a field during an aborted landing at First Aero Squadron Airpark (NM09), Columbus, New Mexico, while returning from an aerial application. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The private pilot was uninjured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The pilot did not hold an agricultural aircraft operator certificate under 14 CFR Part 137. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The flight was not operating on a flight plan and originated from NM09 at 0805. The pilot stated that during an initial swath run of the second flight of the day, the spray pump ceased working. He was unable to get the spray pump to work again while circling a field so he decided to return and land at NM09 with the undispensed load of agricultural applicant. Upon touch down on runway 27 (4,000 feet by 100 feet, gravel), the airplane bounced after hitting "rough spot." The pilot performed an aborted landing, applied full engine power, and selected flaps to their second setting. The pilot realized that the airplane did not have enough engine power to climb above approaching terrain so he started a slow turn to the left to fly crosswise to the terrain at an altitude of about 15 feet above ground level and felt he was doing fine. The pilot said that he did not realize that the airplane was near stall speed and it did not seem to him that there was any buffet or warning before the airplane stalled. The pilot said the airplane was not equipped with a stall warning indicator. The airplane impacted the ground, which resulted in the right main landing gear tearing off and the right wing peeling back at a 45-degree angle. The airplane skidded about 40 feet and flipped over, crushing the top of the vertical stabilizer and cockpit. The pilot said the runway has a 1 1/2 percent rise to the west and locals, regardless of wind, take offs are performed downhill to the east and landings are performed uphill to the west The pilot's safety recommendation was: "There is a dump lever, there is a dump lever, there is a dump lever.... use it !!!" According to a Federal Aviation Administration inspector from the Albuquerque Flight Standards District Office, the pilot did not release the agricultural applicant payload of about 600 pounds prior to the attempted landing. The inspector also stated that the pilot did not have a current flight review.

Aircraft

Registration
N9849V
Reported as
Cessna 188 - Undesignat
Category
Airplane
Serial number
188-0099
Built
1966
Airframe hours
5,218
Engine
Continental O-470-R, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Aerial application · Part 91
Operator
Pilot
Registered owner
Pilot
Airworthiness certificate
Special, Restricted (Special)
Last inspection
Annual · July 23, 2014
Departed
NM09 · Columbus, NM
Destination
NM09 · Columbus, NM
Airport
NM09 · First Aero Squadron Airpark, runway 270, 4,000 × 100 ft, gravel

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
54
Injuries
None
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
Medical
Class 3, With waivers/limitations
Last flight review
April 28, 2012
Seat
Center
Restraint
4-point
Flight hours
1,780 total · 56 in this make and model · 1,780 as pilot in command · 23 in the last 90 days · 9 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
40° at 4 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
None
Temperature
72 °F, dew point 63 °F
Altimeter
30.20 inHg
Observed at
DMN, 20 nm away

Docket · 2

The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 5, 2015, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.3 MB 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.

Other investigations on N9849V · 1

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.