Bellanca 17-30 accident near Plainview, Texas, January 16, 2002
On January 16, 2002, a Bellanca 17-30, registered N7388V, was substantially damaged in an accident near Plainview, Texas (Hale County airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to maintain the proper glidepath, which resulted in landing short of the runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 16, 2002
- Place
- Plainview, Texas · Hale County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 17-30 · all 17-30s on the register
- Registration
- N7388V · no longer on the register · serial 30183
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot, he set up the approach to land on runway 22 so that the airplane would touch down on the numbers. Following a normal traffic pattern, the pilot flared the airplane and it landed 12 feet short of the runway. Subsequently, the airplane's nose landing gear contacted the lip at the approach end of the runway and collapsed. The airplane then slid down the runway along the runway centerline and came to a stop upright.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 4,800 hours in all; 40 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 4,700 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 12, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,061 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,100 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-520-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SJN St. Johns AZ at 9:00 pm
- Destination: PVW Plainview TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22, 5,997 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 170° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.92 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 pm from LBB, 30 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.