ERA24LA350

NTSB accident investigation · Piper PA-24-250 · Shirley, NY · August 17, 2024

Accident · No injuriesClass 4 · LimitedFinal report
Date
August 17, 2024, 15:49 local (19:49 UTC)
Place
Shirley, NY · In field adjacent to airport perimeter fence
Injuries
4 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N7531PPiper PA-24-250
Defining event
Landing: Abnormal runway contact
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
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
20240817012029A
Case key
194944

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

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Probable cause

The pilot’s excessive speed during the final approach, which resulted in a collision with a fence during the subsequent aborted landing.

Findings · 2

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.

Performance/control parameters: airspeedAircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintainedPiper PA-24-250: 12 casesAll aircraft: 1,681 casesProbable cause
Use of equip/info: aircraft controlPersonnel issues › Task performance · PilotPiper PA-24-250: 34 casesAll aircraft: 9,295 casesProbable cause

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 enroute portion of the cross-country flight was uneventful. He set up for an approach the 4,200-ft-long runway. He stated that he landed at the normal touchdown point, about 1,000 feet down the runway. When he applied wheel brakes, they did not respond enough to sufficiently slow the airplane. He then elected to abort the landing, but the airplane did not obtain enough lift and settled back toward the ground. The airplane contacted a perimeter fence and came to a stop in a grassy area. The pilot and the three passengers exited the airplane without injury and were met by first responders. An inspector with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported that there was substantial damage to the airplane’s wings, fuselage, and empennage. When asked to provide additional information about the wheel brakes, the pilot reported that he did not have an opinion either way whether the brakes malfunctioned. The FAA reported that damage to the airframe precluded a functional check of the brake system. A review of Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast track data revealed that the airplane’s ground speed on final approach (about 625 feet from the runway) reached about 132 mph. The pilot’s operating handbook for the airplane specified an approach airspeed of 82 mph. Additionally, the weather conditions at the airport at the time of landing included 3-knot tailwind for the landing runway.

Aircraft

Registration
N7531P
Reported as
Piper PA-24-250
Category
Airplane
Serial number
24-2735
Built
1961
Airframe hours
4,073
Engine
Lycoming O-540-A1D5, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · July 26, 2024 · 4 hours before
Departed
MVY · Martha's Vineyard, MA
Destination
Same as departure
Flight plan
IFR
Airport
HWV · Brookhaven, runway 24, 4,201 × 100 ft, asphalt
Equipment
Electronic primary flight display, Electronic multifunction display, Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Stall warning system, Onboard weather

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
51
Injuries
None
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 2, With waivers/limitations
Last flight review
March 15, 2024
Seat
Left
Restraint
Lap only
Flight hours
956 total · 746 in this make and model · 780 as pilot in command · 19 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
130° at 9 knots
Visibility
9 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
1,300 ft broken
Temperature
73 °F, dew point 66 °F
Altimeter
30.01 inHg
Observed at
KHWV
METAR
SPECI KHWV 171949Z AUTO 13009KT 9SM BKN013 23/19 A3001 RMK AO2 T02330189

Docket · 9

The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 19, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 23.8 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 N7531P · 1

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.