- Date
- September 17, 1989, 13:15 local (18:15 UTC)
- Place
- Delphi, IN
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N9816CPiper PA-28R-201
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 26, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890917035589A
- Case key
- 14420
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-in-command's failure to properly compensate for the high sink rate that developed on final approach to land. Factors related to the accident were: the downdraft and the student pilot's failure to maintain a proper rate of descent on 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 commercial student pilot and his instructor were on final approach, when the airplane got into a high sink rate and encountered a downdraft. The instructor attempted to correct the situation, but a hard landing occurred just short of the runway damaging the aircraft.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9816C
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28R-201
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28R-783222
- Airframe hours
- 4,104
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-C1C6, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Aretz Flying Service, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 11, 1989 · 396 hours before
- Departed
- 3AR · Lafayette, IN
- Destination
- 1I9 · Delphi, IN
- Airport
- 1I9 · Delphi Municipal, runway 36, 2,891 × 50 ft, asphalt
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
- 22
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 1,000 total · 50 in this make and model · 852 as pilot in command · 175 in the last 90 days · 55 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 54 °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.
Other investigations on N9816C · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.