NTSB CAROL · Event
Event CHI03LA131
Registry · N9601D
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
PIPER PA-22-160
Year of manufacture
1958 · 45 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19581126
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AD5EA5
Registrant of record
RIFFLE DAVID T
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed which resulted in a stall. A contributing factor was the collapse of the main landing gear.
Factual narrative
On May 19, 2003, at 1400 central daylight time, a Piper PA-22-160, N9601D, piloted by a private pilot, sustained substantial damage when it impacted terrain during landing approach to an off airport landing area near Pierre, South Dakota. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot and passenger were uninjured. The flight departed from Pierre Regional Airport (PIR), Pierre, South Dakota, at 1345 central daylight time. The pilot reported his airspeed abruptly dropped while on approach about eight to ten feet above ground level. The pilot stated the main landing gear collapsed upon impact with terrain and the airplane subsequently slid 40 to 60 feet. The pilot noted there were no holes in the landing surface. The pilot reported no failures or malfunctions with respect to the airplane or its systems. The weather reporting station at the departure airport reported the winds at 1353 as 340 degrees at 15 knots. The airplane impacted terrain while landing at an off airport landing area. The pilot reported the airplane abruptly lost airspeed and impacted terrain, the main landing gear subsequently collapsed and the airplane slid to a stop. The weather reporting station at the departure airport reported the winds at 1353 as 340 degrees at 15 knots. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2003_CHI03LA131.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- NASA NTRS 2026 · Conference Paper
Computational Analysis of Steady State Aerodynamics of Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Configuration in Deep Stall
This study presents a computational investigation of steady state aerodynamics of the Subsonic Ultra-Green Aircraft Research (SUGAR) Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) configuration over a wide range …
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Automating Bird Diverter Installation through Multi-Aerial Robots and Signal Temporal Logic Specifications
This paper tackles the task assignment and trajectory generation problem for bird diverter installation using a fleet of multi-rotors.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Variation of Critical Crystallization Pressure for the Formation of Square Ice in Graphene Nanocapillaries
Two-dimensional square ice in graphene nanocapillaries at room temperature is a fascinating phenomenon and has been confirmed experimentally.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Polycrystallinity enhances stress build-up around ice
Damage caused by freezing wet, porous materials is a widespread problem, but is hard to predict or control. Here, we show that polycrystallinity makes a great difference to the stress build-up process…
- arXiv 2022 · arXiv preprint
Enhanced Prediction of Three-dimensional Finite Iced Wing Separated Flow Near Stall
Icing on three-dimensional wings causes severe flow separation near stall. Standard improved delayed detached eddy simulation (IDDES) is unable to correctly predict the separating reattaching flow due…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2021 · Journal article (JAAER)
Analysis on the Negative Emotional, Physiological, and Cognitive Responses Elicited from of the Activation of a Stall Alarm
Failing to identify an aerodynamic stall can lead to the inability of an aircraft to sustain flight. To warn pilots of an impending or fully-developed stall, many aircraft have safety devices installe…
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗