Piper PA 20 N6939K

Summary

On 18 June 2015 at about 18:20 local time, a Piper PA 20 registered N6939K was involved in an accident near Yellow Pine, Idaho, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

18 June 2015 at 18:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Yellow Pine, Idaho, United States

Nearest airport

Johnson Creek (3U2)

Coordinates

44.9056, -115.4875

Aircraft

Piper PA 20

Registration

N6939K

Category

Airplane

Year built

1950

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Joseph → Yellow Pine

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR15LA190

2 people were seriously injured.

The pilot's delayed decision to go around after realizing that the airplane’s airspeed and altitude were too high, which resulted in an inadequate flare and bounced landing and a subsequent go-around in high-density altitude conditions.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, while the airplane was on final approach to the airport, he realized that it was too high, so he performed a slip to lose altitude; however, due to the excessive speed and descent rate, the airplane subsequently landed hard just before midfield and bounced twice. The pilot then added full power to initiate a go-around. However, the airplane would not climb at a sufficient rate to clear the trees at the end of the runway. The airplane collided with a tree and subsequently impacted the ground adjacent to the departure end of the runway. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The calculated density altitude was 7,697 ft mean sea level and the airplane was about 46 lbs under its maximum gross weight at the time of the accident. It is possible that these issues adversely affected the airplane's climb rate during the go-around.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.