- Date
- June 24, 2021, 18:45 local (Jun 25, 2021, 00:45 UTC)
- Place
- Loveland, CO
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N9277JPiper PA-28-180
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control in flight
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA Flight Standards
- FAA report
- 20210624008109A
- Case key
- 103345
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 flight instructor’s failure to maintain aircraft control during the landing flare and subsequent attempted go-around with a strong quartering crosswind.
Findings · 5
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 flight instructor reported that he was conducting practice maneuvers with a student in the local area when he observed virga developing in the distance. He decided to return to the airport and assumed control of the airplane. During the landing, the airplane encountered a “strong right-to-left wind” gust and began to drift off the runway centerline. The instructor decided to execute a go-around and “quickly advanced to full throttle.” The airplane yawed to the left and continued to drift until it was no longer over the runway. The left wing impacted the ground in the grassy area adjacent to the runway, and the airplane cartwheeled before coming to rest near the parallel taxiway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The flight instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. At the time of the accident, the instructor pilot was landing on runway 15 with wind from 200o at 20 knots. The flight instructor reported that he was aware of a convective SIGMET for thunderstorms and there were thunderstorms in the vicinity at the time.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9277J
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-3356
- Built
- 1966
- Airframe hours
- 4,278
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A3A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Iron Sights Aviation LLC
- Registered owner
- Iron Sights Aviation LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 10, 2021 · 85 hours before
- Departed
- FNL · Loveland, CO
- Airport
- KFNL · Northern Colorado Regional, runway 15, 8,500 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Stall warning system, ADS-B
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
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 33
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 19, 2021
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 388 total · 118 in this make and model · 317 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 17 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 30
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 8 total · 8 in this make and model · 0 as pilot in command · 8 in the last 90 days · 0 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 260° at 16 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility
- 8 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 66 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.04 inHg
- Observed at
- FNL, 0.5 nm away
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 13, 2021, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 37.4 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 N9277J · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.