- Date
- December 31, 2006, 12:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Cumberland, MD
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N348TFPiper PA-28-181
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 26, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20061231030939A
- Case key
- 65103
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 misjudgment of the airplane's distance/altitude during the landing approach.
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
The student pilot/owner of the Piper PA-28-181 turned onto the final leg of the "routine" approach to the runway, with the flaps fully extended and engine power at idle. He noted that he saw four white lights on the precision approach path indicator (PAPI), and about 1/2 miles from the runway threshold, he saw two white and two red lights on the PAPI. The pilot thought that he was "a bit low," but believed the airplane would be able to reach the runway; however, the airplane touched down about 30 feet before the runway threshold. During the landing roll, the nose landing gear struck the edge of the runway pavement and collapsed. The pilot further stated, "What I should have done when it appeared that I was low on [the] approach and getting lower was to add power."
Factual narrative
The student pilot/owner of the Piper PA-28-181 turned onto the final leg of the "routine" approach to the runway, with the flaps fully extended and engine power at idle. He initially noted that he saw four white lights on the precision approach path indicator (PAPI). About 1/2 mile from the runway threshold, he saw two white and two red lights on the PAPI. The pilot thought that he was "a bit low," but believed the airplane would be able to reach the runway; however, the airplane touched down about 30 feet before the runway threshold. During the landing roll, the nose landing gear struck the edge of the runway pavement, and collapsed. The pilot further stated, "What I should have done when it appeared that I was low on [the] approach and getting lower was to add power."
Aircraft
- Registration
- N348TF
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-181
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7790598
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4M, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- CBE · Cumberland, MD
- Destination
- CBE
- Airport
- CBE · Greater Cumberland Reg Airport, runway 23
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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 66
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3
- Flight hours
- 130 total · 53 in this make and model · 39 in the last 90 days · 11 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N348TF · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.