- Date
- August 13, 1998, 19:25 local (23:25 UTC)
- Place
- Vero Beach, FL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N144JRPiper PA-44-180
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 15, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19980813029729A
- Case key
- 43697
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
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Probable cause
The NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The student's improper retraction of the landing gear and the instructor's inadequate supervision.
Analysis
The CFI stated he had taken positive control of the aircraft flight controls on landing rollout from the rated student pilot. He advanced the throttles to initiate a touch-and-go takeoff. The rated student pilot raised the landing gear control lever to the up position without his knowledge. The CFI reached down to retract the flaps when the nose pitched down and the airplane collided with the terrain.
Factual narrative
On August 13, 1998, at about 1925 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-44-180, N144JR, registered to Flight Safety International, operating as a 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight, crashed on takeoff from the Vero Beach Municipal Airport, Vero Beach, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The commercial pilot/CFI and rated student pilot reported no injuries. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.
The CFI stated the rated student pilot had been making touch-and-go landings to runway 11R. While the airplane was on landing rollout, he took positive control of the airplane to demonstrate another takeoff to the rated student pilot. He advanced the throttle levers for takeoff. The rated student pilot raised the landing gear control lever to the up position without his knowledge. He reached down to retract the flaps when the nose pitched down and the airplane collided with the terrain.
Examination of the landing gear assembly by the Director of Maintenance for Flight Safety International stated, " visual inspection of the gear and recent aircraft records would indicate that the gear was working properly and no precrash mechanical failure was evident."
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N144JR
- Reported as
- Piper PA-44-180
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 7995125
- Airframe hours
- 10,126
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-E1A6D, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Flight Safety International
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · August 8, 1998 · 22 hours before
- Departed
- VRB
- Airport
- VRB · Vero Beach Municipal, runway 11R, 7,296 × 100 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
- 35
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 1,042 total · 479 in this make and model · 907 as pilot in command · 133 in the last 90 days · 36 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 150° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 20,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 75 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- VRB
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.