Piper J3C-65 N98879

Summary

On 20 July 1997 at about 16:00 local time, a Piper J3C-65 registered N98879, operated by Jett Riley, was involved in an accident near Leesburg, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 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

20 July 1997 at 16:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Leesburg, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Eustis (X55)

Coordinates

28.7993, -81.8805

Aircraft

Piper J3C-65

Registration

N98879

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Jett Riley

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Eustis → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ATL97LA107

2 people had minor injuries.

the pilot's inadvertent entry into a secondary stall and spin, as engine power faltered during application of power, while recovering from an intentional stall. The hesitation (faltering) of power and the pilot's diverted attention were related factors.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that he was demonstrating stalls to his son. He said that he had recovered from the first stall without incident and climbed to 2000 feet. He said he initiated a second stall (over the area of a lake). Also, he said that while attempting to recover, the engine failed to return to full power as the throttle was advanced, and the airplane entered a spin; then while recovering, the right wing tip struck the water, and the airplane cartwheeled and sank.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.