- Date
- December 30, 1992, 16:40 local (Dec 31, 1992, 00:40 UTC)
- Place
- Herald, CA
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 1 uninjured; on the ground: 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3872CPiper PA-18-125
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 28, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921230051969A
- Case key
- 27894
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 failure of the pilot to maintain a proper descent rate and his failure to take timely remedial action to correct a high sink rate prior to colliding with the ground.
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 told FAA inspectors that he flew to the accident site to visit some friends who were on a hunting trip. He decided to land in an open field where his friends were located. On short final approach the aircraft developed a high sink rate and collided with the ground. The main landing gear sheared off the aircraft and struck one of the people on the ground, breaking both legs and his hip. The examining FAA inspector reported that the student pilot was not endorsed for solo privileges.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3872C
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-125
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-763
- Engine
- Lycoming O-290-D, 125 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Randall O. Davenport
- Registered owner
- Randall O. Davenport
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Departed
- O20 · Lodi, CA
- Destination
- NONE
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
- 25
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 40 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 20,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 50 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.