- Date
- February 2, 2015, 13:00 local (18:00 UTC)
- Place
- Valdosta, GA
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N42993Piper PA-32-301
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 29, 2015
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20150202001749A
- Case key
- 90684
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 failure to compensate for gusty wind conditions during the landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing and subsequent nose landing gear collapse.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that he was landing the airplane in turbulent conditions with gusting wind. He stated that during the landing flare, the airplane encountered an updraft, followed immediately by a downdraft. The airplane subsequently impacted the runway and the nose landing gear collapsed, resulting in substantial damage to the engine firewall. The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies of the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Review of archived weather information for the accident airport about the time of the accident revealed variable wind at 9 knots with gusts to 19 knots.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that he was landing the airplane in turbulent conditions with gusting wind. He stated that during the landing flare, the airplane encountered an updraft, followed immediately by a downdraft. The airplane subsequently impacted the runway and the nose landing gear collapsed, resulting in substantial damage to the engine firewall. The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies of the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Review of archived weather information for the accident airport about the time of the accident revealed variable wind at 9 knots with gusts to 19 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N42993
- Reported as
- Piper PA-32-301
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 32-8306025
- Built
- 1983
- Airframe hours
- 3,400
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540 K1G5, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Bc Aviation LLC
- Registered owner
- Bc Aviation LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · January 15, 2015
- Departed
- GPT · Gulfport, MS
- Destination
- VLD · Valdosta, GA
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- VLD · Valdosta Regional, runway 35, 8,001 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Stall warning system, Satellite tracking device, Onboard weather, Electronic multifunction display
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
- 44
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- January 16, 2015
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 353 total · 100 in this make and model · 41 in the last 90 days · 23 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 9 knots, gusting 19
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 37 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.98 inHg
- Observed at
- VLD
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 17, 2015, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.2 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.