NTSB Factual Report

On September 29, 2003, at 1500 Pacific daylight time, a single-engine Piper PA-22 airplane, N2291A, was substantially damaged after landing short of runway 07 at the Cle Elum Municipal Airport (S93), Cle Elum, Washington. The airplane was registered to and operated by a private individual. The private pilot and his sole passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the cross-country flight, and a visual flight rules (VFR) flight plan was filed and activated. The personal flight departed Ellensburg, Washington, at 1445, with Cle Elum as its destination.

According to the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB form 6120.1/2), the pilot reported that while on a "normal approach" he could see he was low on [the] glide path. The pilot stated that he then added power, but not enough and touched down 15 feet short of the runway. The pilot further stated that even though the nose gear collapsed, he was able to hold the nose off the ground for 300 feet until he entered a gravel area off the side of the runway. The pilot reported that after contacting the gravel area the airplane's nose dropped, digging into the gravel and traveling another 30 feet before flipping over and coming to rest in an inverted position.

An FAA inspector, who traveled to the accident site, reported the left wing, the rudder, and vertical stabilizer sustained substantial damage. The right wing strut was bent upward, the lower forward center section of the fuselage was damaged by impact from the collapsed nose gear, and both propeller blades were bent after striking the runway surface.

At 1453, the weather reporting facility at the Ellensburg Municipal Airport, located 23 nautical miles southeast of S93, reported the wind was variable at 3 knots.

NTSB Probable Cause

An undershoot due to the pilot's failure to maintain a proper glide path on final approach to landing. A factor was the gravel.