| Crash location | 33.254722°N, 97.580556°W |
| Nearest city | Decatur, TX
33.234283°N, 97.586139°W 1.4 miles away |
| Tail number | N9419C |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 07 Jan 2005 |
| Aircraft type | Piper PA-28-161 |
| Additional details: | None |
On January 7, 2005, at 2300 central standard time, a Piper PA-28-161 single-engine airplane, N9419C, was substantially damaged when it struck a power line terrain while on final approach to the Decatur Municipal Airport (LUD), near Decatur, Texas. The flight instructor, student pilot, and passenger were not injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by a private individual. Dark night visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. The local flight originated from LUD at an unknown time.
The 6,150 hour flight instructor reported in the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2), that they had completed a series of night touch-and-go landings at Alliance Fort Worth Airport, near Fort Worth, Texas, and had returned to LUD and completed two more touch-and-go landings. While on final approach to a full stop landing on runway 35, the instructor informed the student pilot that he "was getting too low." Subsequently, the airplane struck power lines. The instructor took control of the airplane as the decent steepened and applied full power. The airplane impacted terrain, collided with a fence, and came to rest upright adjacent to the runway.
Examination of the airplane by an Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector that responded to the accident site revealed the vertical stabilizer was bent and approximately 10 inches of the rudder was missing.
The Decatur Municipal Airport (LUD) features a single 3,900-foot long and 60-foot wide asphalt runway (35/17). Runway 35 is equipped with a medium intensity lighting system, with eight green lights to identify the end of the runway. Runway 35 is not equipped with either a PAPI or a VASI to assist flights flight crews to attain the proper descent profile. The airport is an uncontrolled airfield operating under class G airspace. The common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) is 122.8 megahertz.
The closest weather reporting station was located at the Denton Municipal Airport (DTO), near Denton, Texas, located approximately 19.5 miles east of LUD. At 1153, DTO reported wind from 350 at 7 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, broken cloud layer at 1,400 feet, temperature 37 degrees Fahrenheit, dew point 34 degrees Fahrenheit, and an altimeter setting of 30.25 inches of Mercury.
The student pilot's failure to maintain obstacle clearance and the instructor's inadequate supervision. Contributing factors were the prevailing dark night conditions, and the power line.