- Date
- May 21, 1985, 19:30 local (May 22, 1985, 00:30 UTC)
- Place
- Valparaiso, IN
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N8521NPiper PA-28-235
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850521021569A
- Case key
- 13074
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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.
Loss of control - on ground/water
Weather condition - crosswindFactor
Weather condition - gustsFactor
Dispatch procedures - poorCause
Compensation for wind conditions - inadequateCause
Directional control - not maintainedCause
Lack of total experienceFactor
On ground/water encounter with terrain/water
Terrain condition - ditchFactor
Analysis
Acft contacted a ditch following a loss of directional control during landing roll. Plt reported, 'more experience in handling crosswinds' could have prevented the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8521N
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-235
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2811319
- Airframe hours
- 1,575
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-B4B5, 235 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Jack O. Kneifel
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- LAF · Lafayette, IN
- Flight plan
- Unknown
- Airport
- VPZ · Porter County, runway 9, 6,000 × 150 ft, asphalt
N8521NRegistered now · Piper PA-28-235Airframe modelPiper PA-28-235Engine modelLycoming 0-540 series
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
- 34
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 674 total · 342 in this make and model · 192 as pilot in command · 302 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 30° at 10 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.