N2817X – PIPER PA-28-181 – 2014-10-10 NTSB Accident Report

On October 10, 2014, a Piper PA-28-181 (N2817X) was involved in an incident near Ann Arbor, MI. All 1 person aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: The collision with a deer during a night takeoff.

The pilot reported that the accident occurred as she was practicing nighttime takeoffs and landings. During the takeoff roll, as the airplane was rotating for liftoff, the airplane collided with a deer on the runway. The pilot immediately aborted the takeoff on the remaining runway. Following the accident a portion of the deer was found wrapped around the nose landing gear. Further examination revealed substantial damage to the forward fuselage and firewall as result of the collision with the deer. The pilot reported that, before the collision with the deer, there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

This incident is documented in NTSB report CEN15CA013. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N2817X.