Piper PA28 N1592J accident near Bishopville, South Carolina

Probable cause

The flight instructor’s inadequate supervision of the student during a go-around, which resulted in a loss of lift and a subsequent collision with the VASI lights.

NTSB analysis

The flight instructor reported that while practicing short field takeoff and landing maneuvers with a helicopter rated commercial pilot, about 25 ft above the runway he called for a go-around when the approach became unstable. When it became apparent to the instructor that the airplane was not climbing, he started to manipulate the flight controls with the student to assist with the go-around maneuver, unaware that the student had retracted the flaps fully to 0° degrees. Subsequently, the airplane lost lift, descended, and struck the Visual Approach Slope Indicator (VASI) lights before coming to rest in the grass, resulting in substantial damage to the stabilator. The flight instructor reported that there were no preimpact anomalies or malfunctions which would have precluded normal flight.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA21LA280 for the full record.