- Date
- April 11, 1991, 16:00 local (23:00 UTC)
- Place
- Gualala, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N2915GPiper PA28-236
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 30, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910411010109A
- Case key
- 27175
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
That the pilot failed to properly use the flight controls and to maintain directional control. Contributing to this accident were the gusty crosswind conditions that existed at the time of the accident.
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 encountered a gusty, crosswind condition from the north/northwest during the landing flare on runway 31. The pilot failed to properly input the correct flight control response and upon landing he failed to maintain directional control. At the time of the accident the winds were form the north/northwest at 15 knots gusting to 22 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2915G
- Reported as
- Piper PA28-236
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7911243
- Engine
- Lycoming O-540-J3A5D, 235 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- T.J. Bielen, Jr., Inc.
- Registered owner
- T.J. Bielen, Jr., Inc.
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Departed
- CCR · Concord, CA
- Airport
- Q69 · Ocean Ridge, runway 31, 2,450 × 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
- 49
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 400 total · 228 in this make and model · 318 as pilot in command · 46 in the last 90 days · 30 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 345° at 15 knots, gusting 22
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.