Hoskins Lonnie F VELOCITY XL RG N84KJ

Summary

On 4 December 2016 at about 23:25 local time, a Hoskins Lonnie F VELOCITY XL RG registered N84KJ was involved in an accident near Petaluma, California, 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

4 December 2016 at 23:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Petaluma, California, United States

Nearest airport

Petaluma Muni (O69)

Coordinates

38.2325, -122.6339

Aircraft

Hoskins Lonnie F VELOCITY XL RG

Registration

N84KJ

Category

Airplane

Year built

2006

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Petaluma → Petaluma

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR17LA032

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed during an aborted landing, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack and an inadvertent aerodynamic stall. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s distraction while on final approach.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot reported that he was on final approach for landing when he observed another airplane landing on the same runway. To maintain separation between the two airplanes, the pilot performed s-turns and retracted the landing gear to improve the glide distance. When he extended the landing gear for the second time in preparation for landing, the landing gear position indicator light did not illuminate. The pilot pushed the gear reset button and subsequently pulled back on the control stick to abort the landing, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and stalling 10 to 20 ft above the runway. A witness observed the accident airplane on final approach with the landing gear retracted and at a low airspeed. The airplane touched down, bounced back into the air, settled onto the runway, and slid about 100 ft before coming to rest. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the landing gear handle was in the UP position. A mechanic who recovered the airplane reported that he overheard the pilot say he was distracted on final approach.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.