- Date
- March 17, 1990, 15:00 local (21:00 UTC)
- Place
- Sullivan, IL
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N6340ZPiper PA-25-150
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 29, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900317005679A
- Case key
- 14496
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 NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The pilot-in-command's failure to maintain adequate terrain clearance during a turn at low altitude, resulting in ground collision. Contributing to the severity of the pilot's injury was his failure to use the installed shoulder harness.
Analysis
The pilot had completed refueling at his father's farm and took off to the west from a dirt field. At about 25 ft AGL, the aircraft entered a right turn and remained in a bank until it struck the ground with the right wingtip. The airplane was destroyed as it cartwheeled to rest. The pilot sustained serious injury and had no recall of the final maneuvers.
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6340Z
- Reported as
- Piper PA-25-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 25-523
- Airframe hours
- 3,285
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A2B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Robert Lamar Goss
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 9, 1989 · 32 hours before
- Destination
- IOW · Iowa City, IA
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
- 37
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter, Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 6,713 total · 905 in this make and model · 6,444 as pilot in command · 49 in the last 90 days · 11 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 290° at 18 knots, gusting 24
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 5,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 52 °F, dew point 37 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- DEC, 19 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 N6340Z · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.