- Date
- September 5, 1988, 09:30 local (14:30 UTC)
- Place
- Cohasset, MN
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N7222DPiper PA-22-150
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 25, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880905036959A
- Case key
- 13897
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
Failure of the PIC to maintain a proper glide path in order to clear obstructions along the flight path of his final approach.
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 acft collided with trees on final apch to land at a pvt airstrip. The plt stated that on earlier attempts to land he was high and fast. He stated he intentionally slowed the acft and used less alt in order to not land too long on the airstrip. He stated that on short final, the acft descended below the tree line because of a downdraft. He stated he added power but was afraid that if he raised the nose, the acft would stall. Therefore, he kept the nose level and flew through the tree tops. The acft contacted one large tree and descended to the airstrip.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7222D
- Reported as
- Piper PA-22-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 22-5047
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A3A, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Cutsforth, David L.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 6, 1988
- Departed
- Cohasset, MN
- Destination
- Cohasset, MN
- Airport
- runway 27, 2,500 × 100 ft, grass/turf
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
- 21
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 81 total · 55 in this make and model · 47 as pilot in command · 29 in the last 90 days · 16 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 10 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 59 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- CPZ, 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.
Other investigations on N7222D · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.