- Date
- July 19, 1997, 15:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Edgartown, MA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N4530JPiper PA-28R-180
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 28, 1999
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970719018989A
- Case key
- 28216
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 inadequate compensation for wind conditions and his failure to maintain directional control. Related factors were the crosswind, wind gusts and high vegetation.
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
The pilot started his takeoff roll and lifted the nose of the airplane from the uneven, rough, turf runway, with a crosswind from the left. The airplane was aligned with the intended takeoff direction for about 528 feet, then it veered off the left side for an additional 776 feet, and collided with shrubs. According to the pilot, he lifted the nosewheel to protect it from the rough runway, and when the airplane initially drifted to the right, he corrected with left rudder, and left main wheel brake. The airplane then veered off the left side of the runway. The pilot reported that there was no mechanical malfunction with the airplane or the engine. The reported winds at the time of the accident were 270 degrees at 16 knots with wind gusts to 23 knots. The FAA reported a substantial dip in the turf runway, about the point where the airplane began to drift to the left.
Factual narrative
On July 19, 1997, at 1530 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28R-180, N4530J, was substantially damaged when it collided with rough terrain during the takeoff roll at the Katama Airpark Airport, Edgartown, Massachusetts. The certificated private pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight that originated at Edgartown, Massachusetts. An instrument flight rules flight plan had been filed, but not activated. The flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
The pilot was taking off on runway 24, a rough, uneven, turf runway, when the airplane veered off the left side of the runway onto rough terrain and collided with shrubs. He said that he lifted the nosewheel on the takeoff roll to protect it from the rough runway, but a crosswind from the left caught the airplane. As the airplane began to drift to the right, he corrected with left rudder and left main wheel brake, but the nosewheel came down at an angle to the left, and the airplane veered off the left side.
According to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Inspector, examination of the ground scars at the accident site revealed the airplane was aligned with the intended takeoff direction for about 528 feet, and then veered off the left side of the runway for 776 feet, before it came to rest. The FAA Inspector said there was a substantial dip in the turf runway, about the point where the airplane veered off the left side.
The pilot reported that there was no mechanical malfunction with the airplane or the engine. The reported winds at the time of the accident were from 270 degrees at 16 knots with wind gusts to 23 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4530J
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28R-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28R30388
- Airframe hours
- 4,197
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-B1E, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Ramco Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 23, 1997 · 122 hours before
- Departed
- 1B2
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- 1B2 · Katama Airpark, runway 24, 2,700 × 50 ft, grass/turf
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
- 74
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,021 total · 1,662 in this make and model · 1,802 as pilot in command · 12 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 16 knots, gusting 23
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MVY, 6 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.