Piper PA-28R-201 N204ND

Summary

On 14 May 2011 at about 19:30 local time, a Piper PA-28R-201 registered N204ND, operated by University of North Dakota, was involved in an accident near Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

14 May 2011 at 19:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States

Nearest airport

Grand Forks International (KGFK)

Coordinates

47.9472, -97.1739

Aircraft

Piper PA-28R-201

Registration

N204ND

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

University of North Dakota

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Grand Forks → Grand Forks

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN11LA390

Nobody was injured.

The flight instructor’s inadequate supervision of the landing, which resulted in an inadequate flare and subsequent hard landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor reported that his student was practicing a simulated forced landing to a runway when the accident occurred. He stated that, after a firm touchdown, the airplane began to veer to the right. He noted that the right wing was lower than the left wing and his initial thought was that the right tire was flat. After coming to a stop, the airplane would not move forward without an excessive application of engine power. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the right main landing gear had collapsed rearward, with substantial damage to both wings and the fuselage. Examination of the right main landing gear did not reveal any preimpact anomalies or failures that would have prevented normal operation. Interviews of recent flight crews did not reveal any hard landings that could have damaged the right main landing gear before the accident flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.