Piper PA-28 N991A

Summary

On 13 May 2016 at about 17:50 local time, a Piper PA-28 registered N991A, operated by ATP USA, Inc., was involved in an accident near Crystal River, Florida, 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

13 May 2016 at 17:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Crystal River, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Crystal River-Captain Tom Davi (CGC)

Coordinates

28.8678, -82.5703

Aircraft

Piper PA-28

Registration

N991A

Category

Airplane

Year built

2015

Engines

1

Operator

ATP USA, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Crystal River → Crystal River

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA16CA243

Nobody was injured.

The student pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the takeoff, which resulted in runway excursion and collision with a ditch. Contributing to the accident was the improper flap retraction procedure employed by the pilot during takeoff.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The student pilot reported that shortly after the airplane rotated during the takeoff, he noticed that the flaps were extended. He further reported that about 20 feet above the ground he retracted the flaps from 25 degrees to zero degrees, and simultaneously encountered wind that pushed the airplane towards the ground and left of centerline. Once the airplane settled on the ground, he attempted to correct back to the center of the runway, but reported that the airplane veered off the runway to the left and impacted a ditch. A postaccident examination revealed substantial damage to the engine mount. According to the student pilot there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. A review of recorded data from the automated weather observation station located on the airport, revealed that, about 5 minutes after the accident the wind was 280 degrees true at 6 knots, wind gust 14 knots,  visibility 10 statute miles, and sky clear. The airplane landed on runway 27. The Federal Aviation Administration has published the Airplane Flying Handbook FAA-H-8083-3A (2004). This handbook discusses retraction of the flaps and states in part: Depending on the airplane's altitude and airspeed, it may be wise to retract the flaps intermittently in small increments to allow time for the airplane to accelerate progressively as they are being raised. A sudden and complete retraction of the flaps could cause a loss of lift resulting in the airplane settling into the ground.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.