Piper PA 46 accident near Stevensville, Maryland, December 28, 2015
On December 28, 2015 at about 4:45 pm local time, a 1986 Piper PA 46, registered N9083U, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Stevensville, Maryland (Bay Bridge airport). It was a business 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 pilots failure to maintain glide path, descent rate and landing flare, in off shore wind conditions, resulting in a hard landing short of the runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 28, 2015 · about 4:45 pm local time
- Place
- Stevensville, Maryland · Bay Bridge · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA 46 310P, built 1986 · all PA 46s on the register
- Registration
- N9083U · registry record · serial 46-8608039
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot, he and his passenger embarked on a cross country flight and intended to land at an airport that borders the Chesapeake Bay. The airport runway approach path extends into the bay and the runway is about 133 feet from the water. The pilot reported that on approach he experienced "gusts/turbulence during the entire approach." The pilot recalled that he made a normal approach as he crossed the bay and when he was over land, he began to flare the airplane. He reported that the airplane "dropped suddenly and I touched down some 20 feet short of the runway" at approximately 75 knots indicated airspeed. The airplane impacted the ground, struck a runway light and became airborne. The pilot attempted to abort the landing by applying full throttle and setting the flaps to 20 degrees, however the airplane settled to the ground, shearing off the landing gear and coming to rest in the safety area north of the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the both wings. The reported wind at the arrival airport was reported as being from 070 degrees at 8 knots. The runway heading at the arrival airport was 11. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical failures or anomalies prior to or during the flight that would have prevented normal flight 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
- Turbulence encounter during approach (VFR pattern final)
- Loss of lift during landing
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing (flare/touchdown)
- Loss of control on ground during landing defining event
- Attempted remediation/recovery during landing (aborted after touchdown)
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Descent/approach/glide path › Not attained/maintained
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Landing flare › Not attained/maintained
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Windshear › Effect on equipment
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,400 hours in all; 1,700 in this make and model; 54 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 4,400 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 21, 2015
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Passenger
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,516 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 15, 2015
- Maximum gross weight: 4,100 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-550C (piston); 1,204 hours total
- Operator: Fly Safely LLC
The flight
- Departed from: LOM Philadelphia PA at 4:10 pm
- Destination: W29 Stevensville MD
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 11, 2,713 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.37 inHg
- Observation at 5:33 pm from KW29, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.
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 GAA16CA092.