N801PZ – Zenair ZENITH 801 – 2019-10-18 NTSB Accident Report

On October 18, 2019, a Zenair ZENITH 801 (N801PZ) was involved in an incident near Knoxville, TN. 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 pilot's failure to maintain a proper descent rate during the approach and his improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing.

The pilot reported that, during a power-off 180° approach, he noticed he was "drifting" and would not make the intended touchdown point. He added power to correct, and then reduced the power to idle to resume the approach. On short final, the airplane encountered a "wind shift or gust" and developed a high sink rate. He applied power and lowered the nose, but the airplane landed hard.

The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage.

The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

The airport's automated weather observation station reported that, about 5 minutes before the accident, the wind was variable at 3 knots. The pilot landed the airplane on runway 08.

This incident is documented in NTSB report GAA20CA043. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N801PZ.