Piper PA-28R-200 accident near Clearwater, Florida, September 26, 2022
On September 26, 2022 at about 10:00 pm local time, a 1972 Piper PA-28R-200, registered N1434T, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Clearwater, Florida (Clearwater Air Park airport). It was an instructional 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor’s delayed remedial action.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 26, 2022 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Clearwater, Florida · Clearwater Air Park · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28R-200, built 1972 · all PA-28R-200s on the register
- Registration
- N1434T · registry record · serial 28R-7235288
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the flight instructor, at the conclusion of the checkout flight he and the pilot were returning to the airport for landing. The instructor described that the pilot’s approach was stable until he began the landing flare too high, at an estimated altitude of about 20 feet. The flight instructor told the pilot to execute a go-around and then attempted to take over the flight controls. He was unable to recover before the airplane landed hard, resulting in substantial damage to both wings. The flight instructor stated that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane 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
- Hard landing during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Landing flare › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Instructor/check pilot
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring other person › Instructor/check pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private, sport pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 529 hours in all; 168 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,050 hours in all; 61 in this make and model; 950 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: June 2, 2021
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,463.9 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 27, 2022
- Maximum gross weight: 2,750 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-C1C (piston); 3,732 hours total
- Operator: Tampa Bay Aviation Inc
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 34, 4,108 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 8,500 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.05 inHg
- Observation at 5:53 pm from CLW
Weather report (METAR): KCLW 022255Z AUTO 04008KT 10SM SCT050 BKN085 28/21 A3005 RMK AO2
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ERA22LA435.