- Date
- August 9, 2016, 19:00 local (23:00 UTC)
- Place
- Eminence, IN
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3884HErcoupe 415
- Defining event
- Landing: Landing area undershoot
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 22, 2016
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA - Indianapolis FSDO
- FAA report
- 20160809007249A
- Case key
- 93812
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 the landing approach and his failure to use available engine power to arrest the descent, resulting in an undershoot and collision with terrain.
Findings · 2
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 private rated pilot reported that he flew a normal traffic pattern to the grass strip airport. During the final landing approach, he was lined up with the runway but a little bit low for the approach. He stated that he knew he was low and for an unknown reason he did not advance the throttle to arrest the airplane's descent. This resulted in the airplane's landing gear contacting the bean field. When the gear contacted the beans, the airplane nosed down into the ground and was damaged. The airplane came to rest on the end of the grass runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the firewall and fuselage. The pilot was not injured. When asked if he experienced any mechanical difficulties with the airplane, he responded that there were none and that the airplane was operating perfectly. Based on this information the pilot failed to maintain a proper glide path during the landing approach and then failed to use available engine power to arrest the descent, resulting in an undershoot and collision with terrain.
Factual narrative
The private rated pilot reported that he flew a normal traffic pattern to the grass strip airport. During the final landing approach, he was lined up with the runway but a little bit low for the approach. He stated that he knew he was low and for an unknown reason he did not advance the throttle to arrest the airplane's descent. This resulted in the airplane's landing gear contacting the bean field. When the gear contacted the beans, the airplane nosed down into the ground and was damaged. The airplane came to rest on the end of the grass runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the firewall and fuselage. The pilot was not injured. When asked if he experienced any mechanical difficulties with the airplane, he responded that there were none and that the airplane was operating perfectly.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3884H
- Reported as
- Ercoupe 415 (CD)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 4585
- Built
- 1956
- Engine
- Continental C85, 85 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 16, 2015 · 1,820 hours before
- Departed
- 2R2 · Indianapolis, IN
- Destination
- II09 · Stilesville, IN
- Airport
- II09 · Patrum Field, runway 24, 2,400 × 60 ft
- Equipment
- Handheld GPS
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
- 78
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- June 4, 2015
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 584 total · 135 in this make and model · 3 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Variable at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 8,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 90 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.96 inHg
- Observed at
- IND, 18 nm away
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 15, 2016, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 622 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.