Piper J3C-85 N7018H

Summary

On 31 July 1998 at about 20:15 local time, a Piper J3C-85 registered N7018H was involved in an accident near Seminole, Texas, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

31 July 1998 at 20:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Seminole, Texas, United States

Coordinates

32.7108, -102.6509

Aircraft

Piper J3C-85

Registration

N7018H

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW98FA340

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane impacted the ground in a nearly vertical attitude. The empennage was folded and twisted to the left. All aircraft components were found at the point of impact. There were no eye witnesses to the accident; however, the airplane was observed maneuvering at 100-500 feet agl. The pilot often performed aerial observations of his farms and looked for deer in the accident area. No preimpact discrepancies were found that would have precluded engine operation. A fuselage support tube was fractured and exhibited corrosion. NTSB Metallurgists determined that the corrosion did not penetrate completely through the thickness of the support tube and all fractures were overstress separations. The private pilot had logged 429.7 hours in the accident airplane. Density altitude was estimated at 5,600 feet. Weather data indicated a stationary front extending westward through the area with visible moisture and cumulus clouds.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.