Piper PA 28 N432FL

Summary

On 11 December 2015 at about 01:00 local time, a Piper PA 28 registered N432FL, operated by Patuxent River Navy Flying Club, was involved in an accident near California, Maryland, 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

11 December 2015 at 01:00

Classification

Accident

Location

California, Maryland, United States

Nearest airport

St Mary's County Rgnl (2W6)

Coordinates

38.3169, -76.5586

Aircraft

Piper PA 28

Registration

N432FL

Category

Airplane

Year built

1971

Engines

1

Operator

Patuxent River Navy Flying Club

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Patuxent River → Patuxent River

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

GAA16CA077

Nobody was injured.

The student pilot's descent below the prescribed final approach path at night, and flight instructor's failure to correct the student pilot's descent, which resulted in a collision with trees and impact with the ground.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor reported that during the student pilot's first night flight, the lesson was to familiarize the student with flying at night, and included takeoffs and landings. The flight instructor reported that during landing, the student pilot held the approach path "for a while" then drifted below the approach path, as indicated by the visual approach slope indicator. The flight instructor told the student that he needed to climb and reestablish the airplane on the approach path. The flight instructor reported that subsequently he (the instructor) "became confused" and could not determine the airplane's position relative to the runway. The flight instructor reported that he "snapped out of the condition", but the airplane collided with trees and impacted the ground short of the runway before a recovery could be made. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.