Piper PA24 N6785P

Summary

On 13 December 2018 at about 16:44 local time, a Piper PA24 registered N6785P was involved in an accident near Valparaiso, Indiana, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 December 2018 at 16:44

Classification

Accident

Location

Valparaiso, Indiana, United States

Nearest airport

Porter County Rgnl (VPZ)

Coordinates

41.4517, -87.0044

Aircraft

Piper PA24

Registration

N6785P

Category

Airplane

Year built

1960

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Valparaiso → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN19FA044

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed during the initial climb after takeoff, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack and a subsequent aerodynamic stall and spin.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was departing on a personal flight. Witness observations and surveillance video captured the airplane during the initial climb; the right wing dropped and then the airplane entered a right spin. A surveillance video from a camera mounted on a building near the accident captured the final portion of the accident sequence; the airplane completed one revolution in the spin before it impacted the ground in a near vertical attitude. Examination of the airplane, engine, and systems revealed no evidence of any preimpact anomalies. The circumstances of the accident are consistent with the pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed during the initial climb after takeoff, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack and a subsequent aerodynamic stall and spin.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.