Piper PA28 N5560W

Summary

On 21 May 2018 at about 22:00 local time, a Piper PA28 registered N5560W was involved in an accident near Farmingdale, New York, United States. 3 people were 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

21 May 2018 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Farmingdale, New York, United States

Nearest airport

Republic (FRG)

Coordinates

40.7319, -73.4144

Aircraft

Piper PA28

Registration

N5560W

Category

Airplane

Year built

1962

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Farmingdale

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA291

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack during short final, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and hard landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, on short final, the airspeed was about 65 to 70 knots with full flaps, and he observed the two precision approach path lights indicating two white lights. The left wing dropped, and he did not hear the stall warning horn. The left main landing gear touched down hard, the right main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane veered off the runway to the right. The pilot reported that the airplane hit an "air pocket" and crashed. A witness, located on the ramp, observed the airplane head-on coming in very low and slow. He saw the airplane aerodynamically stall, and the right wing drop. The right wing impacted the ground, followed by the right main landing gear and then the nose landing gear. The landing gear assemblies separated from the airplane, which skidded to an abrupt halt. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.