# NTSB NYC04CA005: Howard DGA-15P, N9271H, Leonardtown, MD, October 9, 2003 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: October 9, 2003, 17:30 local (21:30 UTC) - Place: Leonardtown, MD - Coordinates: 38.315277, -76.550003 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.3153&lon=-76.5500&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report February 5, 2004 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 58125 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=NYC04CA005 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/58125/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC04CA005 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during an aborted landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - in flight, landing - aborted - directional control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - In flight collision with object, landing - aborted - object - fence ## Analysis During the touchdown, the pilot did not attain a proper pitch attitude for a 3-point landing, and the airplane bounced. The airplane bounced a second time, and the pilot attempted to perform an aborted landing; however, the airplane was not aligned with the runway, and as the pilot added power, the airplane drifted left. The pilot attempted to correct the drift with right rudder, but the airplane struck a fence off the left side of the runway. ## Factual narrative On October 9, 2003, about 1730 eastern daylight time, a Howard DGA-15P, N9271H, was substantially damaged during an aborted landing at Captain Walter Francis Duke Regional Airport (2W6), Leonardtown, Maryland. The certificated commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. The pilot stated that after performing some maneuvers for approximately 20 minutes, he returned to 2W6 for landing on runway 11. The runway was 4,150 feet long, 75 feet wide, and consisted of asphalt. The pilot did not attain the proper pitch attitude for a 3-point landing, and the airplane bounced. The airplane bounced a second time, and the pilot attempted to perform an aborted landing. However, the airplane was not aligned with the runway, and as the pilot added power, the airplane drifted left. The pilot attempted to correct the drift with right rudder, but the airplane struck a fence off the left side of the runway. The airplane came to rest between a grass area and the fence, in a nose-down attitude. During the impact, the right wing and fuselage sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported a total flight experience of 4,191 hours; of which, about 54 hours were in the same make and model as the accident airplane. The reported wind at an airport approximately 7 miles east of the accident site, at 1755, was variable at 3 knots. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N9271H](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N9271H), registered now, S/N 776, built 1943 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Howard Aircraft Corp. DGA-15P - Registry model: [Howard DGA-15P](https://openairdocs.org/model/howard-dga-15p) (registry code 4690506) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney R-985 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-r-985-series) (registry code 52008, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 776 - Engines: Pratt & Whitney R-985 450 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Charles Everett - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: 2W6, Leonardtown, MD - Airport: 2W6, Captain Walter Francis Duke Re, runway 11, 4,150 × 75 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 44; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 3; flight hours: 4,191 total, 54 in this make and model, 4,100 as pilot in command, 5 in the last 90 days, 5 in the last 30 days, 0 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: variable at 3 knots - Visibility: 6 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 20,000 ft broken - Temperature: 73 °F, dew point 61 °F - Altimeter: 30.15 inHg - Observed at: NHK, 7 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 20031009030599A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20031009030599A), Oct 9, 2003: Howard DGA15P, Leonardtown, MD, Substantial damage. (-23) On October 9, 2003 at 1730 EST N9271H, a Howard DGA-15-P owned by gatorcor inc. and operated by [privacy data omitted], was on final approach at captain… 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.