Piper J3C-65 accident near Peoria, AZ
On December 28, 2003, a Piper J3C-65 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Peoria, AZ. 4 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- December 28, 2003
- Place
- Peoria, AZ
- Aircraft
- Piper J3C-65 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 4 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 33.801°N, 112.251°W
- NTSB ID
- 20040108X00028
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On December 28, 2003, about 1312 mountain standard time, a wheel-equipped Piper J3C-65 airplane, N2094M, and a Schleicher ASK-21 aerobatic glider, N274KS, were destroyed during a midair collision, about one-half mile north of the Pleasant Valley Airport, Peoria, Arizona. The two occupants of the Piper, and the two occupants of the glider, were fatally injured. The aircraft collided after the Piper departed runway 5L at the Pleasant Valley Airport about 1310, and turned southwest, into the area where the glider was performing aerobatic maneuvers. Witnesses reported that following the collision, both aircraft entered uncontrolled descents and impacted the desert terrain north of the airport. The private pilot of the Piper was seated in the rear seat, and the airplane owner, a commercial pilot and certificated flight instructor, was seated in the front seat. The Piper was being operated under Title 14, CFR Part 91, as a local area personal flight. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Medical Records Center, the airplane owner did not possess a current airman's medical certificate. The Schleicher glider was operated by the Turf Soaring School, Peoria, under Title 14, CFR Part 91, as an instructional/demonstration flight. The pilot of the Schleicher glider, a commercial glider pilot and certificated flight instructor, was seated in the rear seat, and the passenger was seated in the front seat. The glider departed the Pleasant Valley Airport about 1250. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plans were filed. During the on-sc
Probable cause
The inadequate visual lookout by the pilots of both aircraft, which resulted in their failure to see-and-avoid each other's aircraft and a subsequent midair collision. A factor associated with the accident was the airplane pilot's failure to determine that the aerobatic box was in use by the glider prior to his entry into the aerobatic box.
More accidents in AZ
- De Havilland DHC-6-300, Sep 27, 1989
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- Cessna 421C, Sep 2, 1995
Browse: Arizona · Piper aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
