- Date
- June 14, 2022, 18:15 local (22:15 UTC)
- Place
- Eaton Rapids, MI
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N3553MPiper PA-28-181
- Defining event
- Initial climb: 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
- Federal Aviation Administration, Grand Rapids FSDO
- FAA report
- 20220614009819A
- Case key
- 105264
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 airspeed in the climb with a quartering tailwind which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and subsequent impact with trees.
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 in the airplane’s left seat reported that they were taking off from a turf runway with a quartering tailwind. The pilot in the right seat was flying and rotated 1,000 ft down the runway where they got into ground effect. About 800 ft from trees at the end of the runway and an airspeed of about 63 kts, the airplane began to climb. After they cleared the first group of trees, the stall warning came on. The pilot pushed the nose over to regain airspeed, but the airplane’s tires caught in a second set of trees. The airplane went into the trees and subsequently impacted the terrain. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings and the forward fuselage. The left seat pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. A National Transportation Safety Board Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report was not received from the right seat pilot. At the time of the accident, the airplane was taking off on runway 08 with winds 140 degrees at 10 kts and the density altitude was 2,805 ft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3553M
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-181
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7890314
- Built
- 1978
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4M, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Ixi LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 26, 2022 · 5,878.93 hours before
- Destination
- PTK · Pontiac, MI
- Airport
- 60G · Skyway Estates Airport, runway 26, 2,653 × 100 ft, grass/turf
- Equipment
- Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Stall warning system, Satellite tracking device
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
- 31
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Private, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 2, 2021
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 635 total · 386 in this make and model · 511 as pilot in command · 39 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 51
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Right
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 140° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 9 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 85 °F, dew point 74 °F
- Altimeter
- 28.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LAN, 12 nm away
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 23, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.9 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.