Great Lakes 2T 1A N863K

Summary

On 8 June 2020 at about 16:30 local time, a Great Lakes 2T 1A registered N863K was involved in an accident near St. Mary's, Pennsylvania, United States. One person was 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

8 June 2020 at 16:30

Classification

Accident

Location

St. Mary's, Pennsylvania, United States

Nearest airport

St Marys Muni (OYM)

Coordinates

41.4125, -78.5025

Aircraft

Great Lakes 2T 1A

Registration

N863K

Category

Airplane

Year built

1932

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

St. Mary's → St. Mary's

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA20CA210

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain proper glide path during final approach which resulted in a collision with airport equipment short of the runway.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that after about 15 minutes of flying around the airport, he returned for landing. While he was on the base leg of the airport traffic pattern, he thought the airplane was a little high, so he reduced engine power so he could join the final approach on a 3-degree glide slope. As he entered the final approach, he added a little power and aimed for a touchdown point about 1,000 ft down the runway, which was sloped; it was higher on the approach end and dipped down in the middle. During short final, he realized that he descended below the glide path and his sink rate was higher than expected, so he added engine power, but shortly after doing so, he felt a "bang" and jolt, followed by a pitch down and impact with the terrain. The airplane struck a localizer antenna near the approach end of the runway and skidded to a stop in the grass. The forward portion of the fuselage, right wing, and horizontal stabilizer were substantially damaged. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures of the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.