NTSB Factual Report

On December 3, 2003, at 1000 mountain standard time, a Piper PA-28R-200 single engine airplane, N1451T, made a hard landing at Double O Ranch, a private dirt airstrip near Morenci, Arizona. The pilot was operating the borrowed airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The certified flight instructor (CFI), the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight originated from the Tucson International Airport, Tucson, Arizona about 0800. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan had not been filed.

During a telephone interview with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge (IIC), the pilot stated that during the flare on a short-field landing attempt, he configured the airplane in an excessive nose-up attitude in an effort to use as little runway as possible. The landing was hard but he did not think that the airplane sustained damage. A few hours later, the pilot returned to the airplane with the intention to depart to Tucson International. While performing a preflight inspection, he noticed damage to the left stabilator tip and a leak in the left tire. A mechanic repaired the stabilator and tire, and did not find any other damage to the airplane at that time.

A few days later, the same mechanic inspected the airplane further by removing the tail cone. He discovered that the aft bulkhead, in front of the tail cone, had a dent with an approximant diameter of 1.5 inches. He found that the tail tie down attachment had been bent and pushed upward resulting in damage to the bulkhead. The pilot believed that the tail tie down attachment made contact with the dirt airstrip during landing. He noted there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane.

NTSB Probable Cause

the pilot's excessive landing flare, which resulted in an improper touchdown and hard landing.