- Date
- June 30, 2007, 13:15 local (18:15 UTC)
- Place
- Lubbock, TX
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N41585Piper PA28R-200
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 30, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Lubbock, Texas
- FAA report
- 20070630010369A
- Case key
- 66123
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 inadvertent stall and subsequent hard landing as result of the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed and his delayed relinquishing of the airplane's controls when requested by the flight instructor.
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 failed to maintain airspeed on short final resulting in a stall and a hard landing. The 253-hour private pilot and the 700-hour certificated flight instructor (CFI) were performing a power-off 180-degree approach to land when they overshot the runway while turning to final. Once realigned with the extended centerline of the runway, the flight instructor observed that the airspeed was indicating 70-75 knots while the single-engine airplane descended through an altitude of 200-feet above ground level (AGL). As the flight continued to descend to approximately 30-feet AGL, the private pilot "applied excessive back pressure" and established a pronounced nose-high attitude. The flight instructor attempted to push the nose of the airplane down; however, he was unable to overpower the student. The flight instructor reported that the pilot "did not immediately relinquish the controls when requested by the CFI." Once the flight instructor regained the airplane's controls, he added power to counteract the descent; however, the airplane stalled approximately 15-feet AGL and landed hard on the runway. An examination of the airplane revealed structural damage to both wings. No pre-impact anomalies with the airplane's controls were reported.
Factual narrative
The pilot failed to maintain airspeed on short final resulting in a stall and a hard landing. The 253-hour private pilot and the 700-hour certificated flight instructor (CFI) were performing a power-off 180-degree approach to land when they overshot the runway while turning to final. Once realigned with the extended centerline of the runway, the flight instructor observed that the airspeed was indicating 70-75 knots while the single-engine airplane descended through an altitude of 200-feet above ground level (AGL). As the flight continued to descend to approximately 30-feet AGL, the private pilot "applied excessive back pressure" and established a pronounced nose-high attitude. The flight instructor attempted to push the nose of the airplane down; however, he was unable to overpower the student. The flight instructor reported that the pilot "did not immediately relinquish the controls when requested by the CFI." Once the flight instructor regained the airplane's controls, he added power to counteract the descent; however, the airplane stalled approximately 15-feet AGL and landed hard on the runway. An examination of the airplane revealed structural damage to both wings. No pre-impact anomalies with the airplane's controls were reported.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N41585
- Reported as
- Piper PA28R-200
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28R-7435203
- Airframe hours
- 7,558
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Albert Louis Hilliard
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · June 1, 2007 · 17 hours before
- Departed
- F83 · Abernathy, TX
- Destination
- LBB · Lubbock, TX
- Airport
- LBB · Lubbock International Airport, runway 35L, 11,500 × 150 ft, concrete
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 23
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- November 1, 2005
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 253 total · 19 in this make and model · 12 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 41
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- January 1, 2007
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 700 total · 62 in this make and model · 114 in the last 90 days · 48 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 230° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 59 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.09 inHg
- Observed at
- LBB
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.