- Date
- July 21, 2025, 10:48 local (14:48 UTC)
- Place
- San Juan, PR
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N4187UPiper PA28
- Defining event
- Takeoff: Loss of control in flight
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 20, 2025
- 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
- 20250721012959A
- Case key
- 200596
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 student pilot’s excessing pitch attitude during takeoff, which resulted in a loss of aircraft control and aerodynamic stall.
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 student pilot reported that the accident flight was her second solo flight, and she had accumulated 0.6 hours of solo experience during her previous solo flight. She added that her flight instructor told her that she could practice soft and short field takeoffs if she felt comfortable. During the accident flight, she was attempting a soft field takeoff technique. After liftoff, the airplane drifted left and the student pilot attempted to correct with right rudder, but the airplane stalled left and impacted a parking lot. Both of the airplane’s wings and the fuselage sustained substantial damage during the accident. Postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures, nor did the student pilot report any. Review of an airport video recording confirmed that the airplane took off in an extreme nose high attitude before it yawed left and stalled.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4187U
- Reported as
- Piper PA28 (181)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2843201
- Built
- 1998
- Airframe hours
- 10,667
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Inter American University Of Puerto Rico
- Registered owner
- Inter American University Of Puerto Rico
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 14, 2025
- Airport
- SIG · Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport, runway 9, 5,539 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Stall warning system, 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
- 20
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 43 total · 43 in this make and model · 0.6 as pilot in command · 21.4 in the last 90 days · 4.3 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 100° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 86 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.05 inHg
- Observed at
- TJIG
- METAR
- TJIG 211445Z 10012KT 10SM SCT025 SCT060 30/22 A3005
Docket · 5
The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 20, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 8.1 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.