Piper PA-32-260 accident near Sebastian, FL
On April 7, 2023, a Piper PA-32-260 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Sebastian, FL. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- April 7, 2023
- Place
- Sebastian, FL
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32-260 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 27.813°N, 80.496°W
- NTSB ID
- 20230407107025
Official records · ERA23FA185
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
On April 7, 2023, at 1443 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-32-260, N44588, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Sebastian, Florida. The private pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. Automatic dependent surveillance - broadcast (ADS-B) data provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) revealed that the flight departed X26 about 1330 to the east and flew over the coast of Florida for about 1 hour. During the flight, the pilot flew north and south along the coastline about 4,000 ft mean sea level (msl) then performed several turns, climbs, and descents before returning inland, where he conducted several other maneuvers before returning to the airport. He entered a 5-nautical mile straight-in approach to runway 10, a 3,199-ft-long paved runway. Several witnesses located in the skydive drop zone about 600 ft from the approach end of runway 10 stated that the airplane was on final approach, appeared slower than normal, and the wings were wobbling as it approached. As the airplane descended to the runway, it touched down hard before bouncing back into the air and displayed a nose-up attitude; there was a simultaneous rapid increase in engine power. The left wing then dropped, and the airplane rolled to the left and descended. The left wing contacted the ground off the side of the runway and cartwheeled about 75 ft before the airplane came to rest. The pilot held an FAA first-class medical certificate issued on March 8, 2023. Review of his logbook revealed about
Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to maintain airplane control during recovery from a bounced landing, which resulted in the exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack and an aerodynamic stall.
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Browse: Florida · 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.
