N5673U – PIPER PA 28 – 2016-09-15 NTSB Accident Report

On September 15, 2016, a Piper PA 28 (N5673U) was involved in an incident near Parkersburg, WV. All 2 people aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: The flight instructor’s delayed remedial action during the approach for landing, which resulted in impact with terrain short of the runway threshold. Contributing to the accident was the student pilot’s failure to maintain an appropriate descent rate during the approach for landing.

The flight instructor reported that while on short final during an initial night flight with a student pilot, he commented to the student pilot that the airspeed was low. He then recognized that they were "in a high sink rate" and took over the flight controls. He further reported that he attempted to recover the high sink rate by advancing the throttle to full forward. The engine responded to the throttle input, but the airplane impacted the ground short of the runway threshold and slid about 30 feet left of the runway.

The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing and empennage.

The flight instructor reported no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

This incident is documented in NTSB report GAA16CA490. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N5673U.