Maule M-7-260C accident near Fishers, Indiana, June 8, 2002
On June 8, 2002 at about 6:45 pm local time, a Maule M-7-260C, registered N63KP, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fishers, Indiana. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot not performing a go-around prior to exceeding the proper touchdown point and the pilot not maintaining altitude/clearance from the trees. Factors to the accident were the pilot's inadequate preflight planning and the trees.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 8, 2002 · about 6:45 pm local time
- Place
- Fishers, Indiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Maule M-7-260C · all M-7-260Cs on the register
- Registration
- N63KP · no longer on the register · serial 30029C
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During an attempted aborted landing the airplane impacted trees and terrain. The pilot reported, "Touchdown took place at about 1/2 of the way down the 1000' long field with a short bounce that put me uncomfortably long. I executed a go around and was surprised by the very sluggish climb performance and the height of the trees at the end of the field. I felt like the full flaps were creating too much drag at the same time I realized that I was perilously close to the pine trees at about 50 feet high. I retracted the flaps to reduce drag at about the same time that the right wing tip caught the pine. The impact slowed the right wing and the aircraft spun to the right coming down in the field north of the trees." The pilot stated, "In retrospect I realize that I had too much fuel 50 [gallons] versus my usual 25 [gallons] for this field and that the temperature and high humidity increased my ground speed due to the higher density altitude and drastically reduced my climb performance where my previous landings here [were] in the winter at much cooler temperatures. The turbulence and gusts caused me to add too much airspeed for a successful short field landing taking into account the power line." A weather reporting station recorded the wind speed around the accident time as 6 knots with no gusts.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,219 hours in all; 92 in this make and model; 79 in the last 90 days; 24 in the last 30 days; 3,935 as pilot in command; 0 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 21, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 92 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 31, 2001; 92 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,500 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-470-V4A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 6I4 Lebanon IN at 6:30 pm
- Destination: Fishers IN
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 23,000 ft
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 6:55 pm from IND, 19 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.