On March 22, 2002, a Piper PA-12 (registration N3687M) was involved in an aviation accident near Terrell, TX. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: the inadequate supervision by the flight instructor resulting in the dual student's failure to maintain the proper glidepath during the short field approach. A contributing factor was the downdraft. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
During a tailwheel endorsement flight, a private pilot performing a short field landing struck tree branches and the right wing hit trees. The airplane slowed, nosed down, and turned right before hitting the ground. The flight instructor reported undetected sink rate and underutilized visual clues.
Incident Overview
During a tailwheel endorsement flight, a private pilot was performing a short field landing to a runway. As the airplane approached, tree branches struck the fuselage, and the right wing impacted trees. Subsequently, the airplane slowed, nosed down, and turned to the right.
Instructor's Actions and Observations
The flight instructor recalled applying left aileron and left rudder inputs, which had little or no effect on the airplane's trajectory. The airplane then hit the ground. The instructor believed that the airplane encountered a sink rate that he did not detect during the approach. He further stated that the deteriorating flight path went undetected by him because he thought the airplane had cleared the area of the trees. This caused him to "under utilize visual clues more to the sides of the approach path."
Weather Conditions
The pilot reported that the wind was from the north-northwest at 5-15 mph and described the conditions as "bumpy."