- Date
- August 26, 2000, 07:30 local (12:30 UTC)
- Place
- Parsons, KS
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N93990Ercoupe 415-C
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 17, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000826007839A
- Case key
- 50109
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 not maintaining clearance from the fence post and not attaining the proper touchdown point. A factor was the fence post.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The airplane sustained substantial damage on impact with a fence post and terrain while landing. The pilot and passenger sustained minor injuries. The pilot said, "We turned final and picked my spot for touch down, I.A.S. was 80 m.p.h., final was looking good-lined up on strip good just ahead of runway the airplane just sunk. We had passed over a gravel road about 20' ahead of the strip, but don't really know if that is what effected the plane. We hit the tallest gate post, which is approx. 10 feet from end of runway. The airplane hit the ground and did a 180[degree] turn." The pilot stated that there was no mechanical malfunction. The pilot listed substantial damage to both wings, fuselage, main gear, nose gear, nose bowl, and propeller.
Factual narrative
On August 26, 2000, about 0730 central daylight time, an Ercoupe 415-C, N93990, piloted by a private pilot, sustained substantial damage on impact with a fence post and terrain while landing at a private airstrip near Parsons, Kansas. The personal flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 91. No flight plan was on file. The pilot and passenger sustained minor injuries. The flight originated from Chanute Martin Johnson Airport, near Chanute, Kansas at 0715 and was landing at the time of the accident.
The pilot said, "We turned final and picked my spot for touch down, I.A.S. was 80 m.p.h., final was looking good-lined up on strip good just ahead of runway the airplane just sunk. We had passed over a gravel road about 20' ahead of the strip, but don't really know if that is what effected the plane. We hit the tallest gate post, which is approx. 10 feet from end of runway. The airplane hit the ground and did a 180[degree] turn." The pilot stated that there was no mechanical malfunction. The pilot listed substantial damage to both wings, fuselage, main gear, nose gear, nose bowl, and propeller. The pilot's safety recommendation was to "avoid short strips from now on except in emergency situation."
Aircraft
- Registration
- N93990
- Reported as
- Ercoupe 415-C
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1313
- Airframe hours
- 1,802
- Engine
- Continental C85-12, 85 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Charles Smith
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 8, 2000 · 12 hours before
- Departed
- CNU · Chanute, KS
- Airport
- NONE · Private
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
- 53
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 178 total · 9 in this make and model · 118 as pilot in command · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 190° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 171 °F, dew point 147 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- CNU, 27 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.