- Date
- January 2, 1994, 10:30 local (17:30 UTC)
- Place
- Espanola, NM
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N89036Cessna 140
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 14, 1994
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19940102000169A
- Case key
- 18985
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
Was the dual student pilot's failure to maintain directional control. A factor was the certificated flight instructor's inadequate supervision.
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.
Analysis
According to the instructor pilot, the student pilot made three good landings. On the fourth landing, as the airplane started its landing roll, it veered to the right, departed the runway onto rough terrain, and came to rest in a ditch. The instructor applied full left rudder, but it had no effect.
Factual narrative
On January 2, 1994, at 1030 mountain standard time, a Cessna 140, N89036, was substantially damaged during landing at San Juan Pueblo Airport, Espanola, New Mexico. The student pilot and flight instructor were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the instructional flight.
The instructor pilot reported that the student pilot made "three good landings." She further reported that on the fourth landing, the airplane was straight, power was off, yoke was back, and the airplane touched down softly. Almost as soon as the airplane started its landing roll, it veered to the right, departed the runway onto rough terrain, and came to rest in a ditch. The instructor applied full left rudder, but it had no effect. The instructor pilot could offer no reason why it veered right.
Examination of the aircraft revealed no mechanical or structural failures that could have caused the loss of directional control.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N89036
- Reported as
- Cessna 140
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 8334
- Airframe hours
- 3,190
- Engine
- Continental C-85-12, 85 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Thomas, Marilyn / Hyer, Ron
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Provisional (Special); Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 29, 1993 · 107 hours before
- Departed
- LAM · Los Alamos, NM
- Airport
- Q14 · Espanola, runway 34, 4,995 × 50 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
- 51
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 1,725 total · 22 in this make and model · 1,550 as pilot in command · 46 in the last 90 days · 28 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 40° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 37 °F, dew point 10 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LAM, 20 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.