Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
The pilot's decision to continue the landing rather than execute a go-around. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to maintain proper airspeed and altitude during the approach.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
The pilot reported to the National Transportation Safety Board investigator that the wind was calm as he approached the airport's 2,115-foot-long runway 26 and attempted to land. The pilot stated that he terminated his first two approaches to the runway because he was too fast and too high. In part, this event was due to "obstacles" on the approach end of the runway. During the pilot's third attempted landing, he was also too high and too fast, but he landed anyway. The airplane touched down long, overran the departure end, impacted vines, and nosed over. According to the pilot, there was no mechanical malfunction with his airplane, and the accident could have been prevented had he made a go-around.
The Federal Aviation Administration's "Airport Facility Directory" indicates that a 58-foot-tall tree is located 225 feet from the runway's approach end and 115 feet right of the runway's centerline.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# WPR09CA424