- Date
- May 10, 1999, 15:40 local (19:40 UTC)
- Place
- Rock Hill, SC
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N7173RPiper PA-28-140
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 19, 2000
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19990510004939A
- Case key
- 46284
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 pilot's failure to maintain directional control. Related factors were the crosswind and the pilot's lack of 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
After landing the airplane started to drift to the right of the runway. The airplane departed the runway, and collided with a ditch that ran parallel to the runway. According to the pilot this was his first solo landing. The student pilot had a total of 50 hours flying time, and 6.4 hour in this kind of airplane.
Factual narrative
On May 10, 1999, about 1540 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28-140, N7173R, registered to a private individual, impacted with a ditch after landing at the Rock Hill Airport, Rock Hill, South Carolina. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time, and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 local instructional flight. The airplane was substantially damaged. The student pilot reported no injuries. The flight had originated from the same airport at 1500.
The airplane landed on runway 02, and started to drift to the right of the runway. The airplane departed the runway, and collided with a ditch that ran parallel to the runway.
According to the pilot this was his first solo landing. He stated, "...final approach was normal, I noticed that a slight cross-wind had developed. When the nose gear touched the plane inexplicably turned sharply right." The student pilot had a total of 50 hours flying time, and 6.4 hour in this make and model airplane.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7173R
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-140
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-21883
- Airframe hours
- 3,116
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-E2A, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- William Simpson
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 13, 1999 · 5 hours before
- Departed
- UZA
- Airport
- UZA · Rock Hill/York Co/Bryant, runway 2, 5,500 × 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
- 53
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 50 total · 3 in this make and model · 18 as pilot in command · 6 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 320° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.