Piper PA 31P N14TG

Summary

On 12 October 2013 at about 22:00 local time, a Piper PA 31P registered N14TG, operated by Flying Bull Aviation LLC, was involved in an accident near Calexico, California, United States. 3 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

12 October 2013 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Calexico, California, United States

Nearest airport

Calexico Intl (CXL)

Coordinates

32.6672, -115.5175

Aircraft

Piper PA 31P

Registration

N14TG

Category

Airplane

Year built

1974

Engines

2

Operator

Flying Bull Aviation LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

El Cajon → Calexico

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR14LA051

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain the proper pitch attitude during the landing, which resulted in the nose landing gear contacting the surface hard and then separating from the airplane.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he set up for a straight-in approach to the runway, that the approach was normal, and that he completed the prelanding checklist. He was targeting 90 knots indicated airspeed (KIAS) for touchdown, but the airplane was "slightly fast" as it was approaching the runway, so he pulled the power back to idle and initiated the landing flare. The airplane was unresponsive when he pulled up the nose. Although the airplane settled down on the main landing gear first, the nosewheel then contacted the surface and abruptly sheared off, the nose landing gear assembly separated from the airplane, and the airplane then nosed down and slid about 1,000 feet down the runway before coming to rest. Postaccident examination of the nose landing gear strut assembly found that the housing was ruptured and that the strut had separated. Further examination of the assembly found no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that there were known problems controlling the airplane's nose attitude when the airplane was in the landing configuration between 90 KIAS and the recommended landing speed of about 80 KIAS. He stated that, although both these speeds are above the stall speed, they are too slow for the airplane to respond to pilot elevator control inputs. It is likely that the pilot did not maintain the appropriate pitch attitude for landing and that the nose landing gear contacted the surface hard, which broke the gear strut.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.