No fatalities

19 Oct 2008: PIPER PA-20 — Albertville, AL

Albertville, AL, United States

On 19 Oct 2008, a PIPER PA-20 was involved in an aviation accident near Albertville, AL. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane during the landing roll. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

During a touch and go landing, a Piper PA-20 turned left, skidded, and the right landing gear collapsed, causing substantial damage to the right wing and fuselage. The pilot reported no mechanical anomalies.

Accident Sequence

The pilot of a Piper PA-20 airplane was performing touch and go operations in visual meteorological conditions. After completing two touch and go landings without incident, a third landing was carried out. The pilot reported that the approach and landing procedures occurred normally during the third landing, which was a three point landing with light and variable crosswinds. Between the takeoff and landing, the wind direction had shifted approximately 180 degrees. After landing, during rollout, the aircraft abruptly turned to the left and began skidding sideways on the runway.

Pilot Actions and Outcome

The pilot applied right rudder and left brake. As the airplane turned 90 degrees to the left, the right landing gear collapsed, and the right wing impacted the ground, resulting in substantial damage to the right wing and fuselage. The pilot reported that the ground speed at the time of the accident was approximately 35 miles per hour. The aircraft came to rest off the edge of the left side of the runway.

Pilot Report

The pilot reported that there were no mechanical anomalies with the airplane.

Contributing factors

PilotPerformance/control parameters — Not attained/maintained