Piper PA46 N117PR

Summary

On 15 June 2020 at about 17:08 local time, a Piper PA46 registered N117PR was involved in an accident near Williston, Florida, United States. 2 people were 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

15 June 2020 at 17:08

Classification

Accident

Location

Williston, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Williston Municipal Airport (X60)

Coordinates

29.3556, -82.4719

Aircraft

Piper PA46

Registration

N117PR

Category

Airplane

Year built

2019

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Abiline → Williston

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA20LA230

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control while landing with a crosswind, which resulted in a runway excursion and nose landing gear collapse.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot received his private pilot certificate about 2 ½ months before the accident. The pilot then transitioned to the accident airplane, receiving training from an instructor who had completed the factory-authorized training. At the time of the accident, the pilot had a total flight experience of 99 hours, of which 54 hours were in the accident airplane; however, the accident flight was the pilot’s first flight in the accident airplane without a flight instructor. While landing at the airport after a cross-country flight, the airplane departed the right side of the runway onto a grassy area, and the nose landing gear collapsed. Immediately after the accident, the pilot reported to an off-duty law enforcement officer that a gust of wind “got him” and also reported to police officers that a “strong gust of wind” caused the airplane to veer off the runway. In his subsequent written statement, he stated that the nosewheel steering system was unresponsive and contained a manufacturing defect. Although the pilot claimed that there was an issue with the nosewheel steering system, postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal any preimpact mechanical malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. Flight control continuity was established for all flight controls, and nosewheel steering continuity was confirmed. The nose landing gear skid marks on the runway traveled left, then right before exiting the runway. The recorded wind at the airport about 7 minutes after the accident was a left quartering headwind at 11 knots. Given the pilot’s statements regarding the gust of wind, the postaccident examination, and the pilot’s limited experience in the accident airplane, it is likely that the pilot failed to control the airplane while landing in crosswind conditions.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.