- Date
- December 2, 1997, 13:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Vicksburg, MI
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N6295ZPiper PA-46-350P
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 24, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19971202036959A
- Case key
- 10795
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 preflight preparation and his failure to maintain directional control during takeoff. A factor was the uneven runway at the grass airstrip.
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 reported that the airplane went over a large hump in the runway during the takeoff roll at about 800 feet from the approach end of the runway. He reported the airplane veered to the left and the 'takeoff was aborted.' The passenger, who was on board to monitor the instruments, reported that the intended flight was a maintenance test flight. The passenger reported that the airplane entered a large dip in the runway about 1,200 feet from the approach end of the runway. He reported the airplane became 'airborne near stall speed.' The left wing struck the ground. The airplane departed the left side of the runway at about a 45 degree angle and traveled approximately another 1,000 feet before striking a row of small trees before coming to rest.
Factual narrative
On December 2, 1997, at 1330 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-46-350P, N6295Z , operated by Hov-Aire, Inc., sustained substantial damage when it hit trees on the side of the runway during an aborted takeoff. The 14 CFR Part 91 flight was departing an unnamed grass airstrip on a local maintenance test flight with Kalamazoo, Michigan, as the destination. The pilot lost control of the aircraft after it hit a dip in the runway. The private pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed.
The pilot reported that he was departing a private airfield located about seven miles south of Kalamazoo, Michigan. The airplane went over a large hump in the runway during the takeoff roll at about 800 feet from the approach end of the runway. The pilot reported the airplane veered to the left and the "takeoff was aborted."
An Operations Safety Inspector from the Federal Aviation Administration interviewed the passenger who had sat in the right seat of the airplane during the accident. The passenger, who was on board to monitor the instruments, reported that the intended flight was a maintenance test flight. The passenger reported that the airplane entered a large dip in the runway about 1,200 feet from the approach end of the runway. He reported the airplane became "airborne near stall speed." The left wing struck the ground. The airplane departed the left side of the runway at about a 45 degree angle and traveled approximately another 1,000 feet before striking a row of small trees before coming to rest.
The examination of the airplane revealed no abnormalities.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6295Z
- Reported as
- Piper PA-46-350P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 46-22026
- Engine
- Lycoming TIO-540 AE2A, 350 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- Hov-Aire, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Lakala Aviation, Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 1, 1997 · 939 hours before
- Destination
- AZO · Kalamazoo, MI
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
- 56
- Certificate
- Private
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 7,975 total · 227 in this make and model · 7,875 as pilot in command · 22 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,300 ft broken
- Temperature
- 50 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- AZO, 15 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.