- Date
- June 10, 2001, 20:00 local (Jun 11, 2001, 01:00 UTC)
- Place
- West Fargo, ND
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3253NPiper J3-C65
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 10, 2002
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA Fargo FSDO
- FAA report
- 20010610017049A
- Case key
- 53267
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 inadequate preflight planning and the unsuitable landing area selected by the pilot. Additional factors were the uneven terrain and the failed float assembly in overload.
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 floatplane sustained substantial damage when it landed on a grass field, subsequently collapsing the float rigging and damaging the wing. The pilot reported, "... upon slide out, aircraft turned abruptly to line 90 degrees, side loading floats. Bending struts on floats, prop struck float, wingtip struck ground when float struts gave way." The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions with the airplane. A witness who worked at the airport reported the grass field adjacent to the airport had been mowed so the pilot could land. He reported the pilot was the first person to land on the grass at that airport.
Factual narrative
On June 10, 2001, at 2000 central daylight time, a Piper J3-C65 floatplane, N3253N, sustained substantial damage when it landed on a grass field adjacent to the West Fargo Utility Airport (D54), West Fargo, North Dakota. The personal flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The aircraft departed at 1930 from the runway with the aid of dollies on the float rigging of the airplane. It flew around the traffic pattern and proceeded to land on the grass, subsequently collapsing the float rigging and damaging the wing. The private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident.
The pilot reported, "... upon slide out, aircraft turned abruptly to line 90 degrees, side loading floats. Bending struts on floats, prop struck float, wingtip struck ground when float struts gave way." The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions with the airplane.
A witness who worked at D54 reported the grass adjacent to the airport had been mowed so the pilot could land. He reported the pilot was the first person to land on the grass at that airport.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3253N
- Reported as
- Piper J3-C65
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 22444
- Airframe hours
- 5,665
- Engine
- Continental C-90-8FJ, 90 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Lee Erickson
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 6, 2001 · 1 hours before
- Departed
- D54 · Fargo, ND
- Destination
- Fargo, ND
- Airport
- D54 · West Fargo Municipal
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
- 49
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- November 11, 2000
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 787 total · 117 in this make and model · 717 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 59 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.69 inHg
- Observed at
- FAR, 5 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.