- Date
- August 5, 1992, 11:26 local (15:26 UTC)
- Place
- Green Creek, NJ
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N4280MPiper PA-12
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 26, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920805029129A
- Case key
- 37191
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 diverted his attention from flying the airplane and did not maintain a visual lookout, which resulted in a collision with trees.
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 pilot made a low pass fly by prior to picking up a banner, for the purpose of dropping a written message to the ground personnel. After dropping the message the pilot looked back to see where the message landed and the airplane struck trees along his flight path.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4280M
- Reported as
- Piper PA-12
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 4982-21
- Airframe hours
- 6,816
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A2B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 91
- Operator
- Paramount Air Service Inc.
- Registered owner
- Paramount Air Service Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 9, 1992 · 683 hours before
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
- 29
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,125 total · 241 in this make and model · 1,024 as pilot in command · 320 in the last 90 days · 105 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 280° at 8 knots, gusting 14
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 20,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
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 N4280M · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.