- Date
- May 2, 2024, 19:30 local (23:30 UTC)
- Place
- Georgetown, OH · GEO Airport
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N8290CPiper PA-20-135
- Defining event
- Landing: Aircraft wake turb encounter
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20240502008409A
- Case key
- 194226
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
An inadvertent encounter with the rotor wash of a nearby hovering helicopter during landing, which resulted in a loss of control and a runway excursion.
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 the purpose of the flight was to return to his home airport and that there was a military helicopter and another small single engine airplane in the traffic pattern. While the pilot was landing, the military helicopter was in a hover on the ramp adjacent to the runway. The pilot reported that the airplane touched down normally and that he had positive control of the airplane during the initial landing rollout with all wheels on the ground. Once the airplane passed abeam the helicopter, the pilot described that the airplane “levitated” off the ground in a nose high attitude and began to turn to the right. The pilot attempted to regain control of the airplane, but it continued to the right and departed the runway surface. During the runway excursion, the airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported there were no mechanical failures or anomalies with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Based on this information, it is likely that during the landing roll, the airplane encountered the rotor wash of the hovering military helicopter that was adjacent to the runway.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8290C
- Reported as
- Piper PA-20-135
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 20-1119
- Built
- 1954
- Airframe hours
- 2,892
- Engine
- Lycoming O-290-D2, 135 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 10, 2023 · 6 hours before
- Departed
- TZR · Columbus, OH
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- GEO · Brown County, runway 18, 3,530 × 65 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic flight bag or handheld device, ADS-B
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
- 36
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 14, 2022
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 825 total · 120 in this make and model · 613 as pilot in command · 6 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 82 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.93 inHg
- Observed at
- FGX, 21 nm away
- METAR
- METAR KFGX 022335Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 28/13 A2993 RMK AO2 T02810133=
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 18, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 5.6 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.
Other investigations on N8290C · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.