NTSB WPR25LA066 — 2024-12-19 · Placerville, California, United States

Current FAA registration · N29247

Make / Model: PIPER PA-28RT-201T
Year of manufacture: 1979 · 45 years old at event
Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-360 SER (225 hp)
Seats / Engines: 4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 19790418
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S A2FFEC

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N29247 Piper PA-28RT-201T None

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to maintain an adequate descent rate during the landing approach, which resulted in an impact with terrain short of the runway threshold.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that while on approach for landing, the visual approach slope indicator showed that he was above the glide slope. He deployed flaps to descend and re-intercept the glide slope. After the pilot noticed that he was a little low he added power to arrest the descent rate. However, the landing gear impacted a berm about 90 feet from the runway approach threshold, which resulted in substantial damage to both wings. The pilot reported that the airplane had no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

— Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
— Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Descent rate-Not attained/maintained
— Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained
— Environmental issues-Physical environment-Terrain-Sloped/uneven terrain-Contributed to outcome

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2024_WPR25LA066.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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