- Date
- August 28, 2018, 09:30 local (13:30 UTC)
- Place
- Hartford, CT
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N178DBPiper PA46
- Defining event
- Landing: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 18, 2019
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20180828012429A
- Case key
- 98233
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 pilot’s unstabilized approach and hard landing, which resulted in a nose landing gear collapse.
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.
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, during the approach, the tower controller instructed him to stay "high and close." Once he turned to final, he reduced the power, and the airplane began rapidly descending. He added that he applied some power and back pressure to arrest the descent rate as he began to flare, but the airplane landed hard and faster than normal. As the nose landing gear touched down, he applied reverse thrust and braked aggressively. Subsequently, the nose landing gear collapsed, and the airplane came to rest on the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and engine mount. The pilot reported that postaccident examination revealed that a nose landing gear actuator bolt had sheared off. The pilot reported that the primary cause of the accident was his failure to maintain a stabilized approach, which resulted in a hard landing and higher-than-normal ground speed upon touchdown.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that, during approach, the control tower instructed him to stay "high and close". Once he turned final, he reduced the power and the airplane began a rapid descent. He added that, he applied some power and back pressure to arrest the descent rate as he began to flare, but the airplane landed hard and faster than normal. As the nose landing gear touched down, he applied reverse thrust and braked aggressively, subsequently, the nose landing gear collapsed and the airplane came to rest on the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and engine mount. The pilot reported that a post-accident examination revealed that a landing gear actuator bolt, in the nose landing gear, had sheared. The pilot reported that the primary cause of the incident was his failure to maintain a stabilized approach, which resulted in a combination of a hard landing and higher than normal ground speed upon touchdown exacerbated by the force applied as he aggressively applied the brakes and reverse thrust.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N178DB
- Reported as
- Piper PA46 (350P)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 4636333
- Built
- 2002
- Airframe hours
- 1,896
- Engine
- Pratt & Whitney PT6A-35, 560 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Prm Enterprises Inc
- Registered owner
- Prm Enterprises Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 11, 2018
- Departed
- MHT · Manchester, NH
- Destination
- HFD · Hartford, CT
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- HFD · Hartford-Brainard, runway 20, 4,417 × 150 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic multifunction display, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Stall warning system, Onboard weather, Electronic primary flight display
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
- 61
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 11, 2018
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 3,407 total · 540 in this make and model · 3,282 as pilot in command · 27 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 8 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 73 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.02 inHg
- Observed at
- KHFD
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 19, 2018, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.6 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.