Piper PA22 N3544A

Summary

On 17 September 2018 at about 22:00 local time, a Piper PA22 registered N3544A was involved in an accident near Hillsdale, Michigan, United States. 2 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

17 September 2018 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Hillsdale, Michigan, United States

Nearest airport

Hillsdale Muni (JYM)

Coordinates

41.9217, -84.5878

Aircraft

Piper PA22

Registration

N3544A

Category

Airplane

Year built

1954

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Hillsdale → Hillsdale

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA560

1 person had minor injuries.

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

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, during landing, he flared too high, and the airplane aerodynamically stalled. He added that the airplane landed hard, the nose landing gear collapsed, the airplane veered right off the runway into the dirt, and it then nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings, the fuselage, and the empennage. 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.