- Date
- December 13, 1986, 00:55 local (08:55 UTC)
- Place
- San Jose, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N2209QPiper PA-32R-300
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report March 10, 1988
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19861213067529A
- Case key
- 25477
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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
A Piper pa 32R-300 landed short of the rwy after a loss of power. The plt reported during the climb that he turned on the heater and the windshield turned black obscuring outside vision. The plt also indicated that there was a 'pungent odor' at the same time. The plt retarded the throttle and the windshield began to clear. When the plt advanced the throttle to resume the climb the eng began to run rough and then would not produce power. He was given radar vectors toward an airport. The plt indicated that he was unable to judge his position in relation to the airport due to poor visibility. He prematurely lost altitude by s-turning and subsequently landed short of and parallel to the rwy. The aircraft's eng was examined under the supervision of a FAA airworthiness inspector. It was noted that 4 spark plugs had been damaged in the area of the electrode. Further examination during a teardown inspection revealed the muffler had exploded blocking the air induction system.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2209Q
- Reported as
- Piper PA-32R-300
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 32R7780233
- Airframe hours
- 2,745
- Engine
- Lycoming TI0-540 SER, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Flight East Inc.
- Registered owner
- Shelton, John V
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · November 1, 1986 · 95 hours before
- Departed
- HWD · Hayward, CA
- Destination
- BUR · Burbank, CA
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- RHV · Reid Hillview, runway 31R, 3,101 × 75 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
- 30
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,705 total · 119 in this make and model · 2,524 as pilot in command · 266 in the last 90 days · 99 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 3 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 20,000 ft overcast
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- NUQ, 12 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.