- Date
- March 2, 1989, 21:27 local (Mar 3, 1989, 02:27 UTC)
- Place
- Jacksonville, FL
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N3243BPiper PA-22-135
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report January 31, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890302029219A
- Case key
- 32403
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
An unstabilized instrument approach wherein the pilot descended below the mda. Contributing factors included an inadequately equipped acft and the pilot's lack of recent instrument experience.
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 VOR aprch was attempted at the orig dest but a missed aprch was made at minimums. Plt diverted to jax where he was cleared for an ILS rwy 7 aprch. The acft was not equipped with glideslope or marker bcn, but ATC personnel stated plt made it appear that he was equipped for full ILS aprch. Xing alt at om is 1900 ft; flt crossed om at 400-500 ft. at about 4.5 mi from rwy, flt climbed to 900 ft, then at 3.5 mi, descended to 600 ft. ATC advised flt of radar-observed alt excursions during the aprch. The plt stated that he got on the localizer, tracked it for awhile, then got off. He was trying to recapture the localizer when he hit the trees about 1 mi short of the rwy. The plt's bfr had expired 2 mos prior to the crash & review of his logbook showed no evidence of compliance with FAR 61.57, recent IFR experience. There was no evidence of any problem with the acft or components.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3243B
- Reported as
- Piper PA-22-135
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 22-2073
- Airframe hours
- 2,682
- Engine
- Lycoming O-290-D2, 135 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Kenneth J. Pelzar
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 15, 1988 · 240 hours before
- Departed
- OGB · Orangeburg, SC
- Destination
- CRG · Jacksonville, FL
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- JAX · Jacksonville Int'L, runway 7, 8,000 × 150 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
- 42
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,094 total · 701 in this make and model · 1,054 as pilot in command · 47 in the last 90 days · 24 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 30° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 300 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- JAX, 2 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.