Piper PA28R N300KR

Summary

On 5 November 2016 at about 20:00 local time, a Piper PA28R registered N300KR, operated by Wisconsin Aviation, was involved in an accident near Watertown, Wisconsin, 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

5 November 2016 at 20:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Watertown, Wisconsin, United States

Nearest airport

Watertown Muni (RYV)

Coordinates

43.1706, -88.7208

Aircraft

Piper PA28R

Registration

N300KR

Category

Airplane

Year built

1976

Engines

1

Operator

Wisconsin Aviation

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Watertown → Watertown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA17LA090

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to attain a proper glidepath on approach for landing, which resulted in impact with trees. Contributing to the accident was a partial, temporary loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident examination did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot reported that he entered the downwind leg of the airport traffic pattern higher than pattern altitude to avoid a traffic conflict. While on downwind, he switched the fuel selector and turned on the electric fuel pump. As he turned from downwind onto the base leg of the traffic pattern, he reduced engine power to idle and initiated a glide toward the runway. On final approach, the pilot realized that the airplane was too low; he added engine power, but the engine "failed to respond." He cycled the fuel pump, the engine surged, and the airplane impacted treetops and landed short of the runway. The pilot further reported that, after landing, he taxied the airplane to the ramp, thus it is unlikely there was a fuel issue. A postaccident engine examination and test run revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.