- Date
- October 6, 1989, 12:00 local (16:00 UTC)
- Place
- Burlington, CT
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N727ZCessna 170B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 30, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891006039429A
- Case key
- 36563
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 aircraft colliding with a steel drum placed on the runway by unknown person(s) to mark a pothole area.
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 runway has a crown. There was crosswind from the right. After landing the airplane drifted left, but still on the runway. As it passed over the crown, the pilot saw a steel drum ahead and was unable to avoid it. The airplane struck the drum and groundlooped. The drum was placed on the runway by unknown persons to mark a pothole area of the runway. No NOTAM had been issued. The runway was in a poor state of repair.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N727Z
- Reported as
- Cessna 170B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 25542
- Airframe hours
- 5,127
- Engine
- Continental O-300A, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Ernest Rowehl
- Registered owner
- Laboratory Flying Co.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 18, 1988 · 121 hours before
- Departed
- FRGP · Farmingdale, NY
- Airport
- 220 · Juhnnycake, runway 19, 3,420 × 50 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
- 65
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,315 total · 1,832 in this make and model · 2,266 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 8 knots, gusting 12
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.