Grumman American AA-5A N26080

Summary

On 16 July 2000 at about 19:00 local time, a Grumman American AA-5A registered N26080, operated by John Sadler, was involved in an accident near Lawrence, Massachusetts, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

16 July 2000 at 19:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Lawrence, Massachusetts, United States

Nearest airport

Lawrence Muni Airport (LWM)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Grumman American AA-5A

Registration

N26080

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

John Sadler

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Portsmouth → Rockland

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC00LA199

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's failure to attain the proper touchdown point and his delayed remedial action. Also causal was the pilot's lack of recent experience. A factor in the accident was the tailwind condition.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the cross-country flight, the airplane's radios become inoperative. Due to deteriorating weather conditions, the pilot decided to land at an alternate airport. The pilot approached the airport and observed the windsock before landing. He then entered the traffic pattern for Runway 32, and was 'high and fast' on final approach. A slip was initiated prior to the runway threshold; however, the airspeed did not decrease during the approach. The airplane touched down more than 1,950 feet from the approach end of the 3,901 foot long runway, bounced three times, and then the pilot added full power to abort the landing. During the aborted landing, the airplane yawed to the left, impacted a tree, and rolled inverted. The airplane came to rest at the base of the tree. The pilot had accumulated 1,165 hours of total flight experience in the accident airplane; however, in the past 3 years, the pilot had performed one flight on June 7, 1999. At 1454, the winds were reported from 110 degrees at 9 knots.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.