No fatalities

9 Nov 2013: PIPER PA 28-150 (N5790W) — LINK GERALD L — Concordia, KS

Concordia, KS, United States

On 9 Nov 2013, a PIPER PA 28-150 (registration N5790W) operated by LINK GERALD L was involved in an aviation accident near Concordia, KS. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The flight instructor’s improper decision to attempt a climb with an excessive pitch attitude for the tailwind condition and flap setting, which resulted in an approach to stall and subsequent off-field landing. 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

On November 9, 2013, a Piper PA-28-150 (N5790W) performed an off-field landing near Blosser Municipal Airport after a stall during climb. The flight instructor and student pilot were uninjured. The left wing sustained substantial damage.

Accident Details

On November 9, 2013, at approximately 1039 central standard time, a Piper PA-28-150 airplane, registration N5790W, was substantially damaged during an off-field landing near Blosser Municipal Airport (CNK), Concordia, Kansas. The aircraft was operated under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as an instructional flight. The flight instructor and student pilot were not injured. The airplane was registered to a private individual. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed.

Sequence of Events

According to statements from the student and flight instructor, a takeoff on Runway 17 was performed using soft field procedures. After lifting off, a high pitch attitude was adopted to clear a simulated obstacle. The flight instructor recalled that flaps were set to 10 degrees during the climb, while the student recalled a flaps setting of 25 degrees. Both stated that the airplane struggled to climb with the high pitch attitude and subsequently approached a stall. The flight instructor executed an off-field landing, during which the left wing sustained substantial damage.

Weather

The weather observation station at CNK reported at 1055: wind from 010 degrees at 8 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear skies, temperature 15 degrees Celsius, dew point 1 degree Celsius, and altimeter setting 30.18 inches of mercury. Based on the temperature and dew point near the accident time, the engine was in the range of susceptibility for carburetor icing during glide and cruise power settings.

Examination

Examination of the airframe and engine by Federal Aviation Administration personnel found no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.

Contributing factors

Instructor/check pilotDecision related to condition