Piper PA28 N43503 accident near Galax Hillsville, Virginia

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed while turning onto the final approach leg of the traffic pattern, which led to the airplane exceeding its critical angle-of-attack and experiencing an aerodynamic stall.

NTSB analysis

The commercial pilot was conducting a cross-country personal flight and reported that the airplane was on the final approach leg of the traffic pattern when it impacted terrain short of the runway. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation; however, he could not recall what occurred just before or during the accident sequence. The pilot-rated passenger noted that the airplane was low during the final approach and that he put his hand on the pilot's hand to add power but that the airplane impacted the ground about that time.

Although the pilot indicated that he believed that the airplane might have descended due to a microburst, he noted that it was not raining at the time of the accident. Further, there was no evidence of any microburst activity within 10 miles of the accident site about the time of the accident and no indications of any outflow boundary or gust front.

An airplane performance study using GPS and reported wind data revealed that the pilot was slowing the airplane while on the downwind leg of the traffic pattern, and that, while turning onto the final approach leg of the traffic pattern, he continued slowing it while turning onto the base and final legs of the traffic pattern. While on the final approach leg of the traffic pattern, he allowed the airplane to slow to near the stall speed. It is likely that the airplane exceeded its critical angle-of-attack during the turn at low airspeed, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and the airplane's subsequent impact with terrain short of the runway.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA15LA257 for the full record.