Piper J3C accident near Kissimmee, Florida, November 30, 2021
On November 30, 2021 at about 6:37 pm local time, a 1946 Piper J3C, registered N656CJ, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Kissimmee, Florida (Kissimmee Gateway airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s inadvertent application of brakes during touchdown, which resulted in a noseover.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 30, 2021 · about 6:37 pm local time · cases in 2021
- Place
- Kissimmee, Florida · Kissimmee Gateway · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper J3C 65, built 1946 · all J3Cs on the register
- Registration
- N656CJ · registry record · serial 15762
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was receiving instruction for his tailwheel endorsement. While the flight instructor and pilot were landing the tandem-seat, tailwheel-equipped airplane, the airplane bounced. The flight instructor communicated to the pilot “my controls” and blocked him (using the rear seat control stick) from pushing the front seat control stick forward, so that the flight instructor could transition from a bounced wheel landing into a three-point landing. The flight instructor stated, the pilot did transfer control to the flight instructor but didn’t take his feet off the brakes. The pilot stated he was unfamiliar with using heel brakes and applied to much pressure to the brakes, “upon touch down after the bounce we nosed forward and flipped onto our back,” resulting in substantial damage to the rudder. The pilot reported that the airplane had no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
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
What happened, in order
- Loss of control on ground during landing (landing roll) defining event
- Nose over/nose down during landing (landing roll)
- Abnormal runway contact during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action performance › Student/instructed pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Landing gear brakes system › Incorrect use/operation other cases naming the landing gear
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 363 hours in all; 39 in this make and model; 82 in the last 90 days; 43 in the last 30 days; 249 as pilot in command; 67 on instruments
- Last flight review: July 28, 2021
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,261 hours in all; 6 in this make and model; 153 in the last 90 days; 39 in the last 30 days; 941 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: October 6, 2021
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 157 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 15, 2021; 140 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,220 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200A (piston); 175 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 06, 5,001 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.13 inHg
- Observation at 1:56 pm from ISM
Weather report (METAR): METAR KISM 300856Z AUTO 33003KT 10SM CLR 09/08 A3013 RMK AO2 SLP203 6//// T00890078 53001 PNO $=
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 4 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
MEMORANDUM FOR RECORD Investigative Photographs Peter Wentz Air Safety Investigator Eastern Region Aviation Photographs
Photograph 2 – Accident Site – Right side of airplane. Photograph 3 – Accident Site – Front of airplane.
Photograph 4 – Accident Site – Tail section of airplane. Photograph 5 – Accident Site – Tail section of airplane.
Photograph 6 – Accident Airplane – Recovered from accident site on runway.The NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
4 documents, released by the NTSB on August 16, 2022. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 6 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Pilot (CFI) Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 11 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Pilot (CFI) Statement | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 4 | Investigative Photographs | PDF, 4 pages · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N656CJ on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Piper J-3 Cub 3,805 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Piper 44,848 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Continental O-200A 296 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Kissimmee Gateway Airport · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Florida 6,111 since 1982 · 989 in the last ten years
- Florida 21,712 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ERA22LA094.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.