Scott Municipal Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

West Union, Iowa 52175
Sunday, March 27, 2005 14:25 CST

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The airplane collided with the terrain following a loss of control during takeoff on a 4,248 foot long, concrete runway. A witness reported seeing the airplane travel down the centerline of the runway, lift off, and settle back onto the runway. He stated he then heard the tires squeal and the airplane lifted off again, veering to the left. He stated the airplane's attitude was fairly level at this time and he thought to himself, "Come on [pilot's name], get some airspeed." The witness stated the airplane then banked to the left. The left wing contacted the ground and the airplane caught fire and became engulfed in flames. Inspection of the airplane and engine failed to reveal any pre-impact failures/malfunctions which would have resulted in the loss of control. The flaps were found set to 25 degrees, which is the flap setting normally used for short and soft field takeoffs. The normal takeoff flap configuration is zero degrees. The pilot had received his private pilot certificate one and a half months prior to the accident. The pilot's logbook indicated he had a total flight time of 73.3 hours of which 49.5 hours in the accident airplane. Two 14-pound weights were located in the rear fuselage area of the wreckage. The airplane owner stated they usually kept the weights in the airplane to help balance the airplane's cener of gravity when there were just two adults in the front seat. The aircraft occupants during the accident flight consisted of two adults in the front seats and two children in the rear seats.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The pilot's failure to abort the takeoff, his failure to maintain adequate airspeed during the takeoff, and the pull-up to avoid obstacles which resulted in an inadvertent stall. Factors associated with the accident were the pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane, the fence, and the tree line.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 3/27/2005
Event Day of the Week Sunday
Time of Event 1425
Event Time Zone Central Standard Time
Event City West Union
Event State IOWA
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 52175
Event Date Year 2005
Event Date Month 3
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 425907N
Event Location Longitude 0914726W
Event Location Airport Scott Municipal
Event Location Nearest Airport ID 3Y2
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport Off Airport/Airstrip
Distance from airport in statute miles --
Degrees magnetic from airport 90
Airport Elevation 1232
Weather Briefing Completeness Unknown
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1455 Central Standard Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 5
Weather Observation Facility ID DEH
Elevation of weather observation facility 1157
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 18
Time Zone of the weather observation CST
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height --
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) --
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) --
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 15
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 3
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 230
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 6
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 29.87
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury Fatal
On Ground, Fatal Injuries --
On Ground, Minor Injuries --
On Ground, Serious Injuries --
Injury Total Fatal 3
Injury Total Minor --
Injury Total None --
Injury Total Serious 1
Injury Total All 4
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 18582
NTSB Notification Source FAA
NTSB Notification Date Mar 27 2005 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 1525
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information DMS
Date of most recent change to record Oct 27 2005 6:51AM
User who most recently changed record NTSB\JOHB
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office Des Moines, IA FSDO

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N8966W
NTSB Number CHI05FA080
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? No
Damage Destroyed
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name Piper
Aircraft Model PA-28-235
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 28-10543
Certified Max Gross Weight 2900
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 4
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Aug 1 2004 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection --
Airframe Hours --
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name Greg A. Bryan
Aircraft Owner Street Address --
Aircraft Owner City Westgate
Aircraft Owner State IA
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 50681
Operator is an individual? No
Operator Name --
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address --
Operator City --
Operator State --
Operator Country --
Operator Zip code --
Operator Code --
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? --
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation --
Operator Certificate Number --
Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not --
Indicates Domestic or International Flight --
Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail --
Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) Personal
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event Yes
Departure Airport Code 3Y2
Departure City West Union
Departure State IA
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1425
Departure Time Zone CST
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code 3Y2
Destination City --
Destination State --
Destination Country --
Specific Phase of Flight Takeoff
Report sent to ICAO? No
Evacuation occurred No
Date of most recent change to record Sep 13 2005 8:27AM
User who most recently changed record SULP
Since inspection or accident --
Event Location Runway Number and Location 17
Runway Length 4248
Runway Width 50
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --