FTW93LA208

NTSB accident investigation · Piper PA-28-181 · Baton Rouge, LA · July 7, 1993

Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
July 7, 1993, 10:01 local (15:01 UTC)
Place
Baton Rouge, LA
Injuries
1 uninjured
Damage
Destroyed
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N7630CPiper PA-28-181
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report June 30, 1994
Report
Approved by Office Director
FAA report
19930707022769A
Case key
18789

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 student pilot's failure to abort the landing in a timely manner and his failure to maintain directional control.

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.

In flight collision with objectLanding - aborted
Object - pole
Go-around - delayedPilot in commandCause
Directional control - not maintainedPilot in commandCause
In flight collision with terrain/waterDescent - uncontrolled

Analysis

The student pilot was on his third supervised solo when the instructor told him to go around during a touch and go as the airplane drifted left off the runway into the grass. After a delay, the student attempted to abort the landing with the flaps fully deployed. He stated the airplane would not climb. The airplane continued left and struck a light stanchion in the parking lot of the local FAA office. It subsequently struck a billboard and came to rest in the front yard of a residence.

Factual narrative

On July 7, 1993, at 1001 central daylight time, a Piper PA-28- 181, N7630C, was destroyed when it collided with objects and the ground during an aborted landing at Ryan Field in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The airplane, flown by a student pilot, was on a local instructional flight. There was no flight plan filed and visual meteorological conditions prevailed throughout the area. The pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured.

According to the FAA and operator, the student pilot was on his third supervised solo, doing touch and go landings with the instructor on the side of the runway talking to him over a portable radio. The pilot landed on runway 22 and was observed drifting left off the runway into the grass. The instructor told the student to go around. After a delay, the student attempted to execute an aborted landing with the flaps fully deployed. He stated that the airplane would not climb. During the attempt, the student lost control and struck a light stanchion in the parking lot of the local FAA office. After hitting the light, the airplane hit a billboard, came down in an adjacent parking lot, went through a fence, crossed a road, and came to rest in the front yard of a residence.

Aircraft

Registration
N7630C
Reported as
Piper PA-28-181
Category
Airplane
Serial number
7690071
Engine
Lycoming O-360-A4M, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Destroyed
Flight
Instructional · Part 91
Registered owner
Duffard Flying Service
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal; Standard, Utility
Last inspection
Annual · July 1, 1993
Airport
BTR · Ryan Field, runway 22, 3,799 × 75 ft, asphalt

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
46
Certificate
Student
Medical
Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
Seat
Left
Flight hours
11 total · 11 in this make and model · 2 as pilot in command · 11 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
220° at 6 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
3,500 ft broken
Temperature
84 °F, dew point 77 °F
Altimeter
30.00 inHg
Observed at
BTR

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.