Piper PA-28-140 N6814W

Summary

On 6 August 1999 at about 03:15 local time, a Piper PA-28-140 registered N6814W was involved in an accident near Coalinga, California, 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

6 August 1999 at 03:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Coalinga, California, United States

Nearest airport

New Coalinga (C80)

Coordinates

36.1894, -120.3909

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-140

Registration

N6814W

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

LAX99LA265

Nobody was injured.

The flight instructor's failure to maintain a sufficient airspeed to compensate for the known wind shear condition, which resulted in a failure to maintain runway alignment and a hard landing. The flight instructor's inadequate supervision of the flight was also causal.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During prior portions of the flight, the flight instructor observed that there was a strong crosswind from 330 degrees at 10 knots at pattern altitude, while the ASOS and windsocks were showing calm winds on the surface. The instructor and student then initiated a simulated forced landing to runway 30. On final approach, the student was adequately correcting for the crosswind until the airplane descended through 150 feet agl where they experienced a wind shear and the student had difficulty controlling the airplane. About 40 to 60 feet agl, the flight instructor took over the flight controls and initiated a go-around, but the airplane touched down hard on the runway and drifted left off the pavement. The flight instructor maneuvered the airplane further left to avoid a concrete pipe culvert and then collided with the PAPI lights. The airplane came to rest about 1,500 feet from the approach end of the runway. He reported that he had not experienced any problems with the aircraft or engine prior to the accident. Postcrash examination did not reveal any mechanical problems with the engine or airframe.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.