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BFO91LA022

1990-12-30 · MITCHELLVILLE, Maryland, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport W00

Current FAA registration · N6945J

Make / Model
PIPER PA-32R-300
Year of manufacture
1976 · 14 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
7 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19760716
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A93CA2

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

PILOT FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ALTITUDE CLEARANCE ABOVE AN OBSTACLE AFTER THE AIRCRAFT ENCOUNTERED A DOWNDRAFT.

Factual narrative

THE PLT REPORTED THAT BECAUSE OF THE WIND CONDITION, 15 KTS GUST TO 20 KTS, HE USED AN APCH SPEED OF ABOUT 98 TO 102 MPH, INSTEAD OF 87 MPH WHICH HE NORMALLY USES. HE ALSO USED FULL FLAPS. DURING THE APCH THE PLT SIDESLIPPED THE ACFT TO COMPENSATE FOR THE X-WIND. ACCORDING TO THE PLT, THERE WAS A 15 TO 20 FT HIGH DIRTBANK SHORT OF THE RWY, AND WHEN HE FLEW OVER IT, THE ACFT ENCOUNTERED A DOWNDRAFT. THE PLT REPORTED THE ACFT ABRUPTLY LOST 30 FT OF ALTITUDE AND AS HE TRIED TO RECOVER, THE R MAIN GEAR STRUCK THE DIRTBANK, SEPARATING THE GEAR FROM THE ACFT. THE ACFT LANDED ON THE RWY AND SLID TO A STOP. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1990_BFO91LA022.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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