- Date
- September 18, 1990, 17:50 local (Sep 19, 1990, 00:50 UTC)
- Place
- Watsonville, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N2516EPiper PA-38-112
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 17, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900918040759A
- Case key
- 26923
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
Improper handling of the aircraft by the student pilot, which resulted in his failure to attain sufficient airspeed to climb after takeoff, and the instructor's (cfi'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
During a training flt, the instructor (CFI) & student landed the acft on a rough dirt/grass strip that was 2200' long. The CFI reported that as the student was making a rough field takeoff from the strip, the acft became airborne 'just before the middle point of the runway' & 'at this point, the stall warning began to sound.' The CFI said he pushed the yoke forward in hopes of 'coaxing' some acceleration, but the acft's speed remained at about 55 KTS & the acft would not accelerate or climb. According to the CFI, the acft remained about 10' above the surface & felt overweight, underpowered & sluggish. There was insufficient rwy remaining to abort & the CFI hoped to get the acft to accelerate, while dscndg over a bluff beyond the end of the rwy. However, the acft hit a bush or low tree, then it rotate about the vertical axis & crashed. The CFI rprtd that the stall warning continued to sound until the acft 'started sliding down the bluff.' No preimpact mechanical problem was found.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2516E
- Reported as
- Piper PA-38-112
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 38-78a0478
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-L2C, 112 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Santa Cruz Aviation
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- CA66
- Destination
- WVI
- Airport
- CA66 · Monterey Bay, runway 310, 2,200 × 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
- 22
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 730 total · 70 in this make and model · 635 as pilot in command · 70 in the last 90 days · 65 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 315° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.