- Date
- March 14, 2024, 11:48 local (18:48 UTC)
- Place
- Grass Valley, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N1SSPiper Aerostar 601P
- Defining event
- Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20240314002179A
- Case key
- 193937
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’s failure to maintain directional control in a gusting wind condition.
Findings · 3
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 pilot reported that the AWOS weather reported strong gusts of 15 up to 25 kts straight down the runway. At approximately 20 ft agl, he experienced moderate turbulence and elected to abort the landing and attempted to climb. However, as the airspeed was decreasing the airplane was not gaining altitude. The pilot experienced another strong wind gust which put the airplane into a nose down and right wing low attitude, which he was unable to control and collided with the runway substantially damaging the right wing. The pilot stated that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operations.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1SS
- Reported as
- Piper Aerostar 601P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 61P06947963331
- Built
- 1979
- Airframe hours
- 2,730.9
- Engines
- Lycoming IO-540-S1A5MM, 350 horsepower, reciprocatingLycoming IO-540-S1A5MM, 350 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 13, 2024 · 2.1 hours before
- Departed
- KMBC · Brigham City, UT
- Destination
- KGOO · Grass Valley, CA
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- GOO · Nevada County Airport, runway 07, 4,657 × 75 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Handheld GPS, Onboard weather, Stall warning system, ADS-B, Auto-pilot, Electronic flight bag or handheld device
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
- 63
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificates
- Flight engineer, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 22,323 total · 104 in this make and model · 19,500 as pilot in command · 61 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 80° at 17 knots, gusting 29
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 32 °F, dew point 32 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.08 inHg
- Observed at
- KGOO
- METAR
- KGOO 141855Z AUTO 08017G29KT 10SM CLR A3008 RMK A01
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 24, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.1 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.