Piper J3C-65 N88220

Summary

On 13 July 2025 at about 13:41 local time, a Piper J3C-65 registered N88220 was involved in an accident near Howard, 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

13 July 2025 at 13:41

Classification

Accident

Location

Howard, Wisconsin, United States

Nearest airport

Faikel Airfield (08WI)

Coordinates

44.5820, -88.1423

Aircraft

Piper J3C-65

Registration

N88220

Category

Airplane

Year built

1946

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Howard → Howard

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN25LA249

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane while on approach to land.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he was practicing takeoffs and landings in the traffic pattern. He noted that the approach was normal, and the airplane was on the glideslope. As the airplane descended below the tree line, it suddenly lost altitude, and the airplane struck a wire fence near the end of the runway. The right main landing gear became entangled in the fence; however, the pilot was able to continue the landing. The entangled wire from the fence eventually became taut and brought the airplane to an abrupt stop and the airplane nosed over. The wings, wing struts, vertical stabilizer, and rudder sustained substantial damage during the landing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.