Piper PA-28-180 N9277J

Summary

On 25 June 2021 at about 00:45 local time, a Piper PA-28-180 registered N9277J, operated by Iron Sights Aviation LLC, was involved in an accident near Loveland, Colorado, 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

25 June 2021 at 00:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Loveland, Colorado, United States

Nearest airport

Northern Colorado Regional (KFNL)

Coordinates

40.4518, -105.0113

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-180

Registration

N9277J

Category

Airplane

Year built

1966

Engines

1

Operator

Iron Sights Aviation LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Loveland → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN21LA291

Nobody was injured.

The flight instructor’s failure to maintain aircraft control during the landing flare and subsequent attempted go-around with a strong quartering crosswind.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight instructor reported that he was conducting practice maneuvers with a student in the local area when he observed virga developing in the distance. He decided to return to the airport and assumed control of the airplane. During the landing, the airplane encountered a “strong right-to-left wind” gust and began to drift off the runway centerline. The instructor decided to execute a go-around and “quickly advanced to full throttle.” The airplane yawed to the left and continued to drift until it was no longer over the runway. The left wing impacted the ground in the grassy area adjacent to the runway, and the airplane cartwheeled before coming to rest near the parallel taxiway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The flight instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. At the time of the accident, the instructor pilot was landing on runway 15 with wind from 200o at 20 knots. The flight instructor reported that he was aware of a convective SIGMET for thunderstorms and there were thunderstorms in the vicinity at the time.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.