What happened
The flight was initially conducted as a training exercise for a private pilot. Both the certified flight instructor and the student pilot confirmed that the primary training portion of the flight had been completed. At the time of the accident, the student pilot was practicing a short field landing procedure.
The aircraft approached the runway from an unusual direction due to other traffic in the pattern, which necessitated a longer than normal final approach segment. The runway utilized for the landing had a displaced threshold. During the descent, the aircraft's altitude dropped below the safe glide path. Just prior to impact, the passenger observed that the sink rate of the aircraft increased significantly.
The left main landing gear struck a cable strung across the end of the runway. This cable was installed specifically to prevent vehicles from cutting across the airfield. The impact with the cable caused the accident.