# NTSB LAX97LA244: Smith, Ted Aerostar Aerostar 601, N7435S, Boulder City, NV, July 12, 1997 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: July 11, 1997, 17:00 local (Jul 12, 1997, 00:00 UTC) - Place: Boulder City, NV - Coordinates: 35.948176, -114.8552 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.9482&lon=-114.8552&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 6 uninjured - Status: Completed, report May 21, 1998 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 29837 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX97LA244 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/29837/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX97LA244 ## Probable cause the pilot's inadequate in-flight planning/decision, his failure to obtain the current wind information, his selection of the wrong runway, and his delay in aborting landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - In flight collision with terrain/water, landing - aborted - in-flight planning/decision - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - wind information - not obtained, pilot in command (cause) - weather condition - tailwind (contributing factor) - wrong runway - selected, pilot in command (cause) - aborted landing - delayed, pilot in command (cause) ## Analysis Interviews with pilots and the UNICOM operator revealed that the pilot did not receive any airport related weather information prior to his landing attempt. He said that he believed he had only a 10-knot tailwind when he initiated his landing attempt on runway 33, which he chose because it was uphill. The pilot said that he realized that he was not going to be able to successfully land the aircraft and elected to go-around. After retracting the landing gear and applying full power the airframe began to buffet and he elected to set the aircraft on the runway rather than stall the aircraft. The airport UNICOM operator reported that her first contact with the aircraft was after the accident when the pilot called her by radio to ask for a radio check. Additionally, several witnesses reported that the winds were blowing between 30 and 40 mph from a southerly direction when the accident occurred. One party described the windsock as standing straight out. ## Factual narrative On July 11, 1997, at 1700 hours Pacific daylight time, a Smith Aerostar 601, N7435S, landed gear-up after aborting a go-around attempt at the Boulder City, Nevada, Municipal Airport. The aircraft sustained substantial damage and neither the private pilot nor his five passengers were injured. The aircraft was owned and operated by the private pilot and was concluding a personal cross-country flight from French Valley, California. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time. An Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector from the Las Vegas, Nevada, Flight Standards District Office conducted an on-scene investigation. According to the inspector's report, the pilot did not receive any airport related weather information from either the airport UNICOM operator or from other pilots in the area. The FAA inspector reported that the pilot believed he had a 10-knot tailwind when he initiated his landing attempt. The pilot told the inspector that he elected to land on runway 33 despite the fact that he had a tailwind because runway 33 was uphill. According to the inspector, at some point during the landing approach, the pilot said that he realized that he was not going to be able to successfully land the aircraft. He then elected to go-around and retracted his landing gear and applied full power. During the moments after the go-around attempt was initiated, the pilot said that the airframe began to buffet and he elected to set the aircraft back on the runway rather than stall the aircraft. In his written Pilot/Operator report, the pilot stated that "at about 50 feet agl I believe we experienced windshear which caused an accelerated rate of descent . ..at this time I decided to execute a go around [and] retracted gear [and] flaps. . .it was clear to me at this point that the aircraft was not going to obtain flying speed so I decided to put the aircraft down on the remaining runway." Additionally, the pilot reported that he felt "this accident may have been prevented if UNICOM had given the favored runway in use. . .we requested UNICOM to give us this information twice." The aircraft received substantial damage to both engines and propellers, the left wing, the fuselage, and internal structural members of the airframe during the gear-up accident sequence. The FAA inspector also talked with several witnesses who were present at the airport when the accident occurred. The airport UNICOM operator reported that her first contact with the aircraft was after the accident when the pilot called her by radio to ask for a radio check. Additionally, several people interviewed by the FAA inspector reported that the winds were blowing between 30 and 40 mph from a southerly direction when the accident occurred. One party described the windsock as standing straight out. The official aviation weather observation taken at the Las Vegas McCarran Airport (16 miles north of the accident site) was reporting winds from 190 degrees at 21 knots, with higher gusts to 28 knots. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N7435S](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N7435S-1999-04-28), registration cancelled 1999-04-28, S/N 61-0020 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Smith, Ted Aerostar AEROSTAR 601 (AEROSTAR 6) - Registry model: [Smith AEROSTAR 601](https://openairdocs.org/model/smith-aerostar-601) (registry code 8360606) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 61-0020 - Airframe hours: 2790 - Engines: Lycoming I0-540-S1A5 290 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Robert Dale Leach - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, November 19, 1996, 55 hours before - Departed: F70, MURRIETA, CA - Destination: 61B - Flight plan: Unknown - Airport: 61B, Boulder City Municipal, runway 33, 3,850 × 75 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 57; private; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; seat: left; flight hours: 2,615 total, 28 in the last 90 days, 9 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 190° at 14 knots, gusting 28 - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 22,000 ft broken - Temperature: 99 °F, dew point 30 °F - Altimeter: 29.00 inHg - Observed at: LAS, 16 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 19970711047749A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970711047749A), Jul 11, 1997: Bouldercity, NV, Substantial damage. (-16) The pilot decided to land on runway 33. Winds were very strong (30-40MPH) out of the south. The pilot became aware that he was not going to be able to… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.