- Date
- February 4, 2020, 15:02 local (22:02 UTC)
- Place
- Mesa, AZ
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N4400FPiper PA-28-181
- Defining event
- Takeoff: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 27, 2020
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20200204004441A
- Case key
- 100909
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 failure to maintain directional control and the flight instructor's inadequate remediation during a short-field takeoff, which resulted in impact with a parked airplane.
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
The flight instructor reported that she briefed the soft-field takeoff procedure with the student pilot while holding short for the active runway. After the flight was cleared for takeoff, the student aligned the airplane with the runway centerline, advanced the throttle to the full-power position, and released aft pressure from the yoke. During the ground roll, the instructor briefly lost sight of the runway, and when the runway reappeared, she saw the airplane rapidly veering left. The instructor applied full right rudder and right aileron, but the airplane continued veering left. Unable to stop the turn, the instructor reduced engine power but quickly restored it with the intent of flying the airplane back to the runway because the airplane had become airborne. However, the airplane then rolled left, the stall horn sounded, and the airplane touched down on the taxiway and impacted a parked airplane. The right wing and left aileron sustained substantial damage. The instructor and student reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that could have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
The flight instructor reported that she briefed the soft-field takeoff procedure with her student while holding short for the active runway. After the flight was cleared for takeoff, the student pilot aligned the airplane with the runway center line, advanced the throttle to the full power position, and released aft pressure from the yoke. During the ground roll, the instructor briefly lost sight of the runway and when the runway reappeared, she observed the airplane rapidly veering to the left. The instructor applied full right rudder and right aileron control as they had lost directional control, but the airplane continued to the left. Unable to remediate the turn, the instructor reduced engine power, but quickly restored it with the intent of flying the airplane back to the runway as the airplane had just become airborne. However, the airplane rolled to the left, the stall horn came on and then they touched down on the taxiway and impacted a parked airplane. The right wing and left aileron were substantially damaged. The instructor and student reported no mechanical anomalies with the airplane that could have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4400F
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28-181
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2881139
- Built
- 2019
- Airframe hours
- 1,313.4
- Engine
- Lycoming Engines O-360-A4M, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- CAE Oxford Aviation Academy Phoenix
- Registered owner
- CAE Oxford Aviation Academy Phoenix
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · January 30, 2020 · 25 hours before
- Departed
- FFZ · Mesa, AZ
- Destination
- FFZ · Mesa, AZ
- Airport
- FFZ · Falcon Fld, runway 22L, 5,100 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic multifunction display, Data recorder, ADS-B, Stall warning system, Electronic primary flight display
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 26
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- July 21, 2019
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 679.4 total · 49.5 in this make and model · 584.4 as pilot in command · 115.9 in the last 90 days · 42.4 in the last 30 days · 8.1 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Student pilot
- Age
- 23
- Injuries
- None
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 13 total · 13 in this make and model · 13 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 52 °F, dew point 9 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.94 inHg
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 10, 2020, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.9 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.