- Date
- March 29, 2004, 13:00 local (21:00 UTC)
- Place
- Burlington, WA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N65ZAPZL Warzawa-Okecie PZL-104 Wilga 35A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 29, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA FSDO
- FAA report
- 20040329005499A
- Case key
- 59017
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 passenger's interference with flight controls during a go-around maneuver. Contributing to the accident were the passenger's anxiety/apprehension, the pilot's inadequate brief to the passenger about potential control interference, and the gusty wind conditions.
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 reported that he was practicing touch and go landings on runway 10 at the Skagit Regional airport. On the eighth landing the pilot encountered a sudden gust of wind approximately five feet above ground and executed a go around maneuver. He reported that his passenger panicked inadvertently pushing the control stick full forward. The aircraft nosed down steeply to a hard landing impacting the propeller on the runway. The pilot reported that "...better communication & briefing of passenger about go-around may have prevented panic by passenger...." Winds at Arlington Municipal airport, situated 21 nautical miles southeast of Burlington airport, at 1255 on the afternoon of the accident were reported as coming from 120 degrees magnetic at 17 knots with gusts to 20 knots.
Factual narrative
On March 29, 2004, approximately 1300 Pacific standard time, a PZL 104 Wilga 35A experimentally certificated aircraft, N65ZA, registered to a resident of Gig Harbor, Washington, and being operated/flown by a private pilot, sustained substantial damage during an abrupt maneuver/hard landing during a go around at the Skagit Regional airport (BVS), Burlington, Washington. Neither the pilot nor his passenger was injured. Visual meteorological conditions existed and no flight plan had been filed. The flight, which was personal, was operated under 14CFR91, and originated at BVS shortly after noon.
The pilot reported that he was practicing touch and go landings on runway 10. On the eighth landing the pilot encountered a sudden gust of wind approximately five feet above ground and executed a go around maneuver. He reported that his passenger panicked inadvertently pushing the control stick full forward. The aircraft nosed down steeply to a hard landing impacting the propeller on the runway.
The pilot reported that "...better communication & briefing of passenger about go-around may have prevented panic by passenger..." (refer to NTSB Form 6120.1/2).
Winds at Arlington Municipal airport, situated 21 nautical miles southeast of Burlington airport, at 1255 on the afternoon of the accident were reported as coming from 120 degrees magnetic at 17 knots with gusts to 20 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N65ZA
- Reported as
- PZL Warzawa-Okecie PZL-104 Wilga 35A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18830758
- Airframe hours
- 2,700
- Engine
- PZL-Warszana A1-14R, 251 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Martynovych, James A.
- Registered owner
- Jacobson, Timothy S.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- BVS · Burlington, WA
- Destination
- BVS
- Airport
- BVS · Skagit Regional, runway 10, 5,478 × 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
- 43
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- April 1, 2002
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 830 total · 30 in this make and model · 770 as pilot in command · 40 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 14,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.79 inHg
- Observed at
- NUW, 12 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.
Other investigations on N65ZA · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.