Piper PA 25 accident near Llano, CA
On August 27, 2015, a Piper PA 25 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Llano, CA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- August 27, 2015
- Place
- Llano, CA
- Aircraft
- Piper PA 25 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 34.483°N, 117.836°W
- NTSB ID
- 20150827X65830
Official records · WPR15FA250
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn August 27, 2015, at 1206 Pacific daylight time, a Piper PA-25-260, N4369Y, collided with terrain during the landing approach to Crystal Airport, Llano, California. The airline transport pilot was fatally injured, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The airplane was registered to, and was being operated by, Southern California Soaring Academy (SCSA), Inc., as a 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 glider tow operation. Visual meteorological conditions were reported about the time of the accident near the accident site, and no flight plan had been filed. The local flight departed at 1150. Glider tow operations began at 1025 on the day of the accident, and 19 flights were planned in the tow plane throughout the day. The accident pilot was assigned to fly through early afternoon, and a second pilot was going to take over later in the day. Right downwind arrival procedures for runway 25 were in effect for glider traffic. The procedures called for the next glider in the launch sequence to be moved from the northeast staging area to runway 25 when traffic permitted and to depart in tow from the 2,600-ft-long tarmac runway. The tow plane was then to use the runway 7 right downwind approach for a landing in the opposite direction, on the "Tow Plane Landing Zone," which was a parallel gravel surface adjacent to runway 7. The tow pilot completed six uneventful launches before the accident with turnaround times of about 15 minutes. After the sixth launch, the tow plane was serviced with 26 gallons of fuel. For the accident flight, the tow plane departed
Probable cause
The pilot's loss of airplane control during the landing approach due to an incapacitating medical event.
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Browse: California · 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.
