Piper PA-28-140 accident near Allentown, Pennsylvania, November 29, 2004
On November 29, 2004 at about 8:15 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-140, registered N15037, was substantially damaged in an accident near Allentown, Pennsylvania (Allentown Queen City Muni Aprt airport). It was an instructional 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper decision to continue the flight with known deficiencies in equipment. Also causal was the failure of the right main landing gear due to overstress cracking.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 29, 2004 · about 8:15 pm local time
- Place
- Allentown, Pennsylvania · Allentown Queen City Muni Aprt · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-140 · all PA-28-140s on the register
- Registration
- N15037 · registry record · serial 28-7225560
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During the taxi at the departure airport the pilot reported that the airplane required a significant amount of left rudder to remain on the centerline of the taxiway. The pilot did not believe the issue to be anything material and elected to continue the flight. After performing maneuvers, he made a normal approach to landing. Upon touchdown the airplane veered violently to the right, departed the runway, and struck a sign. The pilot reported that the lower portion of the right main landing gear had separated from the airplane during the accident sequence. Examination of the separated portion of the landing gear revealed no mechanical anomalies. The upper portion of the landing gear was forwarded to the Safety Board Materials Laboratory and found to have failed due to overstress cracking. The 1972-model airplane had 6,645 total hours of flight time at the time of the accident, and had received a 100-hour inspection 62-flight hours prior. The airplane had been used primarily for flight training since 1997.
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
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 63 hours in all; 47 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days; 26 in the last 30 days; 11 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: October 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,645 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 8, 2004; 62 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ABE Allentown PA at 7:00 pm
- Destination: 1N9 Allentown PA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 3,950 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.26 inHg
- Observation at 7:51 pm from ABE, 5 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.
Other NTSB records under N15037 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 IAD05LA021.