Ercoupe (Eng & Research Corp ) 415-D N3848H

Summary

On 10 October 2003 at about 00:45 local time, a Ercoupe (Eng & Research Corp ) 415-D registered N3848H, operated by Thomas N. Chapman, was involved in an accident near Harvard, Illinois, United States. One person was 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 October 2003 at 00:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Harvard, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

Pvt

Coordinates

42.4042, -88.6336

Aircraft

Ercoupe (Eng & Research Corp ) 415-D

Registration

N3848H

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Thomas N. Chapman

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wheeling → Harvard

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

CHI04LA008

Nobody was injured.

The pilot misjudged his altitude and distance from the approach end of the airstrip, along with his decision to land at an unlit airstrip at night. Factors involved in the accident were the the night lighting conditions, the unlit airstrip, and the corn crop which the airplane contacted.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane contacted a corn crop while attempting to land on an unlit grass airstrip at night. The pilot stated that he was making a low approach over the unlit airstrip to determine if he was able to see it well enough to land. He stated that if he was unable to see well enough, he had planned to fly to a nearby airport. He stated the field elevation at the airstrip is 1,000 feet and he set his altimeter after listening to the Automated Terminal Information Service (ATIS) of a airport which was approximately 28 statue miles away. He stated that once on final approach, he was able to see the lights from the open hangar at the far end of the airstrip. He reported he descended in the general direction of the runway threshold using a flashlight in the cockpit to view the altimeter. The pilot reported he was next aware of the sound of corn stalks hitting the airplane. The airplane then impacted the ground and turned to the right with the nose gear collapsing. The airplane contacted the corn stalks approximately two-tenths of a mile from the end of the runway. The pilot reported, "I would say I failed to monitor the rate of sink for the fly-by/approach and the situation was due to pilot error."

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.