- Date
- July 9, 2002, 15:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- Sparta, IL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N7744BPiper PA-J3-C65
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 4, 2002
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 55576
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 CFI's failure to maintain directional control during landing roll and the unsuccessful attempt at a go around. A factor was the ditch.
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 when it impacted a ditch during landing roll. The CFI reported that the flight was an introductory tail wheel instructional flight. He reported, "Student pilot flew aircraft under my direction through several flight maneuvers for initial orientation. He also approached the airport for our initial landing on runway 27 at SAR. Upon turning final for the runway I took full control of the aircraft to demonstrate a 3 point landing. All went well until aircraft started an uncontrollable right turn on the runway. I applied full opposite control but was unable to recover so I chose to initiate a go around but could not gain flying speed before encountering a drainage ditch adjacent to the runway. Power was removed and aircraft was damaged in the drainage ditch."
Factual narrative
On July 9, 2002, at 1500 central daylight time, a Piper PA-J3-C65, N7744B, sustained substantial damage during landing roll when it veered off the left side of runway 27 (2,450 feet by 135 feet, turf) and impacted a ditch. The certified flight instructor (CFI) and student pilot were not injured. The 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight had departed the Sparta Community-Hunter Field Airport (SAR), Sparta, Illinois, on a local flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed.
The CFI reported that the flight was an introductory tail wheel instructional flight. He reported, "Student pilot flew aircraft under my direction through several flight maneuvers for initial orientation. He also approached the airport for our initial landing on runway 27 at SAR. Upon turning final for the runway I took full control of the aircraft to demonstrate a 3 point landing. All went well until aircraft started an uncontrollable right turn on the runway. I applied full opposite control but was unable to recover so I chose to initiate a go around but could not gain flying speed before encountering a drainage ditch adjacent to the runway. Power was removed and aircraft was damaged in the drainage ditch."
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7744B
- Reported as
- Piper PA-J3-C65
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 43-570
- Engine
- Continental C-85-8FJ, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Marvin Campbell
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- SAR · Sparta, IL
- Airport
- SAR · Sparta Community Airport, runway 27
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
- 54
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1
- Flight hours
- 5,450 total · 125 in this make and model · 200 in the last 90 days · 30 in the last 30 days
- Role
- Student pilot
- Injuries
- None
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 24, 2002, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 298 KB in all.