- Date
- May 6, 2013, 23:15 local (May 7, 2013, 06:15 UTC)
- Place
- Cottonwood, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N47717Piper PA-28
- Defining event
- Approach-VFR go-around: Controlled flight into terr/obj (CFIT)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Status
- Completed · report July 29, 2013
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- FAA report
- 20130506006209A
- Case key
- 86824
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 student pilot's decision to attempt a night landing on an unlit runway, which resulted in a misaligned approach and subsequent collision with a fence. Contributing to the accident was the student pilot's improper set-up of the airplane radios, which resulted in his inability to activate the airport runway lights, and his mistaken identification of building lights for runway lights.
Findings · 5
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
During a cross-country flight, the student pilot was attempting a night landing for a fuel stop at an unattended airport and was unable to activate the runway lights via radio. He made one approach to runway 32, executed a missed approach, and then initiated an approach to runway 14. He conducted that approach based on two lights that he thought were the runway lights. When the airplane was very close to the ground, the pilot realized that the lights were security lights on a building and initiated a go-around. However, the airplane struck an airport boundary fence northeast of the runway and came to rest on a street outside airport property. The wings and fuselage were substantially damaged by the impact with the fence. Postaccident examination revealed that the No. 1 communications radio in the airplane was set to the proper frequency to activate the runway lights but that the radio selector switch was set to the No. 2 communications radio, which was set to a different frequency. When power was applied to the airplane and the radio selector switch was set to the No. 1 radio, the runway lights were successfully activated. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
The student pilot reported that he was flying the airplane from Oklahoma to California in pursuit of employment opportunities. During that trip, he was attempting a night landing for a fuel stop at an unattended airport, and was unable to activate the runway lights via radio. He made one approach to runway 32, executed a missed approach, and then initiated an approach to the opposite end, runway 14. He conducted that approach based on "two lights that he thought were the runway" lights. When the airplane was very close to the ground, the pilot realized that the lights were security lights on a building, and initiated a go-around. However, the airplane struck an airport boundary fence to the northeast of the runway, and came to rest on a street outside airport property. The wings and fuselage were substantially damaged by the impact with the fence. Postaccident examination revealed that the number one communications radio in the airplane was set to the proper frequency to activate the runway lights, but that the radio selector switch was set to the number two communications radio, which was set to a different frequency. When power was applied to the airplane and the radio selector switch was set to the number one radio, the runway lights were successfully activated. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N47717
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28 (161)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-7816126
- Airframe hours
- 10,162
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 28, 2011 · 160 hours before
- Departed
- Unknown
- Destination
- P52 · Cottonwood, AZ
- Airport
- P52 · Cottonwood Airport, runway 14, 4,252 × 75 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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 65
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Flight hours
- 1 total · 1 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Wind
- 170° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,500 ft broken
- Temperature
- 61 °F, dew point 41 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.03 inHg
- Observed at
- SEZ, 14 nm away
Docket · 14
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 14, 2013, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.1 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.