Piper PA-28R-200 N200EG

Summary

On 10 August 2000 at about 19:30 local time, a Piper PA-28R-200 registered N200EG was involved in an accident near Avalon, California, United States. 3 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

10 August 2000 at 19:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Avalon, California, United States

Nearest airport

Avalon (AVX)

Coordinates

33.3809, -118.4506

Aircraft

Piper PA-28R-200

Registration

N200EG

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Santa Ana → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX00LA291

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate compensation for the downdraft condition and subsequent failure to maintain proper glide path. A factor in the accident was the upsloping runway and nature of the terrain around the runway, which presented an optical illusion and lead the pilot to believe he was high.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot said that the 10-knot crosswind was 45 degrees off the runway heading, and that the approach seemed normal using the VASI as a glide slope guide. The airport is on top of a mountain with three sides that are bordered by steeply down sloping terrain. As he flew over the cliff on short final approach to runway 22 he encountered a downdraft, which caused him to lose 30 feet of altitude. He applied full power and pitched up but was unable to prevent contact with the weeded area short of the runway. The first 2,000 feet of runway 22 slopes up, with the remainder level.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.