NTSB CAROL · Event
Event ERA11LA438
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot's improper rotation during takeoff, resulting in a stall and subsequent collision with the ground.
Factual narrative
On August 3, 2011, about 1111 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-30, N8314Y, registered to a private owner, collided with the ground during initial takeoff climb from Albert Whitted Airport (SPG), St. Petersburg, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The personal flight was operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.The airplane received structural damage to the left wing and airframe. The certificated commercial pilot and three passenger reported minor injuries. One passenger received serious injuries. The flight originated from SPG, en-route to Key West International Airport (EYW) Key West, Florida at 1110. The pilot stated upon reaching 85 mph, he over-rotated the airplane and retracted the landing gear. He did not retract the flaps. The airspeed decreased to 69 mph, and the airplane entered an accelerated stall. The left wing dropped down, and he immediately lowered the nose and leveled the wings. He lost directional control of the airplane and it collided with the ground. He further stated there were no mechanical problems with the airplane before the accident. Review of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved Flight Manual for the Piper PA-30 revealed in Section I, Limitations, that the stalling speed with the landing gear and flaps up is 76 mph. With the landing gear and flaps down the stalling speed is 69 mph. Visual examination of the airframe, flight controls, engine assembly and accessories by an FAA inspector revealed no anomalies with the airplane. During the takeoff roll, with the flaps extended, the pilot over-rotated the airplane when it reached an airspeed of 85 mph. He retracted the landing gear, the airspeed decreased to 69 mph, and the airplane stalled. The left wing dropped, the pilot lowered the nose of the airplane, and it collided with the ground resulting in substantial damage to the airframe. The pilot stated there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies with the airplane. Visual examination of the airplane verified the pilot's statement. The flight manual for the airplane indicated the airplane will stall at 69 mph with the landing gear and flaps extended. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12
NTSB Findings
Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).
- C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Pitch control-Incorrect use/operation - C
- C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2011_ERA11LA438.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…
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