Piper J-3 accident near Brookville, Ohio, September 16, 1999
On September 16, 1999 at about 12:46 pm local time, a Piper J-3, registered N3223N, was destroyed in an accident near Brookville, Ohio. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the stall/spin encountered by the pilot. A factor was the intentional slow flight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 16, 1999 · about 12:46 pm local time
- Place
- Brookville, Ohio · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper J-3 · all J-3s on the register
- Registration
- N3223N · no longer on the register · serial 22415
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was destroyed on impact with level terrain and a post impact fire. A witness said, 'We saw the plane facing northeast, the plane appeared to be hovering, or facing into the wind and hardly moving forward. He banked out of that, flew a circuit and did the same hovering maneuver again, then went into a spin. We heard the engine cut off, come back on, then go off again. It disappeared below the trees and we saw smoke rise above the trees.' The fuselage aft of the cockpit was bent downward approximately 30 degrees. Control system continuity was established. All flight control cables were found intact. The horizontal stabilizer jackscrew indicated nose down trim. The engine was found to rotate freely and engine continuity was established. The upper set of spark plugs were examined and no anomalies were detected. Thumb compression was established on cylinders 2,3 and 4. Cylinder number 1 was removed and no anomalies were detected. The left magneto was removed and was found to produce a spark when rotated by hand. The right magneto did not produce a spark and had evidence of heat damage.
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: private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,300 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,754 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 1, 1999
- Maximum gross weight: 1,220 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental A65-8 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: I62
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:51 pm from DAY, 11 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.