- Date
- September 24, 1992, 22:30 local (Sep 25, 1992, 02:30 UTC)
- Place
- Lansing, MI
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N5122SPiper PA-28-180
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report September 28, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920924038709A
- Case key
- 15558
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's inadequate planning and decision-making.
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 pilot stated he was operating at night at an unfamliar airport. He received progressive taxi instructions to the active runway. The airplane was still on the taxiway when the air traffic controller cleared the pilot for immediate takeoff and advised him of traffic on a two mile final. The pilot reported the pilot-rated passenger was urging him to hurry, and he applied full throttle. The pilot stated he felt something was not right, '...but I couldn't put my finger on it.' When he realized the airplane was still on the taxiway and not the runway, the pilot shut down the engine. The airplane ran off the approach end of the runway, and came to rest in a ditch.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5122S
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7105172
- Airframe hours
- 2,373
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Kudla, Frank R.
- Registered owner
- Kudla, Frank R.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 7, 1991
- Departed
- LAN
- Destination
- 2G5 · Detroit, MI
- Airport
- LAN · Capital City, runway 6, 5,000 × 120 ft
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
- 54
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 381 total · 182 in this make and model · 41 in the last 90 days · 16 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 90° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 45 °F, dew point 41 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LAN, 1 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.