- Date
- December 10, 2023, 16:11 local (21:11 UTC)
- Place
- Ann Arbor, MI
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N90ZZPiper PA46-500TP
- Defining event
- Approach-IFR final approach: Windshear or thunderstorm
- 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
- FAA report
- 20231210018109A
- Case key
- 193503
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 airplane’s encounter with unexpected wind shear during final approach, which resulted in a hard landing short of the runway.
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 pilot reported that he was flying the RNAV (GPS) approach to runway 24 and experienced turbulence about 1,500 ft mean sea level (msl), which was about 700 ft above ground level (agl). He continued the approach with an airspeed between 95 and 100 kts. He stated that about 50 ft agl and short of the runway, the airplane encountered wind shear that violently forced the airplane to the ground. The airplane impacted the ground in a wings level attitude and continued onto the runway. The left main landing gear separated, the airplane veered off the left side of the runway, then came to rest in the grass facing 180° from the direction of travel. Postaccident photos of the airplane revealed substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot stated to the responding fire department that there was a 30 kt crosswind on final approach. The recorded wind data around the time of the accident showed the wind was from 250° to 260° and 7 to 11 kts.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N90ZZ
- Reported as
- Piper PA46-500TP
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 4697223
- Built
- 2005
- Airframe hours
- 2,475.5
- Engine
- Pratt & Whitney PT6A, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Cahoots Air LLC
- Registered owner
- Cahoots Air LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 19, 2023
- Departed
- OSU · Columbus, OH
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- ARB · Ann Arbor Muni, runway 06/24, 3,505 × 75 ft, concrete
- Equipment
- Electronic multifunction display, Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Stall warning system, Onboard weather, Electronic primary flight display
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
- 63
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,304 total · 219 in this make and model · 1,155 as pilot in command · 40 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,400 ft broken
- Temperature
- 36 °F, dew point 34 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.92 inHg
- Observed at
- KARB
- METAR
- SPECI KARB 102133Z 25007KT 7SM SCT010 BKN014 OVC025 02/01 A2992 RMK AO2 RAB10E19 P0000 T00220006
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on February 8, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 11.9 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.