Piper PA-28RT-201 accident near Bakersfield, California, November 17, 2005
On November 17, 2005 at about 8:10 pm local time, a Piper PA-28RT-201, registered N2863X, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bakersfield, California (Meadows Field). 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 adequate airspeed, which resulted in an accelerated stall and hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 17, 2005 · about 8:10 pm local time
- Place
- Bakersfield, California · Meadows Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28RT-201 · all PA-28RT-201s on the register
- Registration
- N2863X · no longer on the register · serial 28R7918181
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane landed hard on the displaced threshold of the runway while maneuvering on short final approach to properly align with the runway. The pilot reported that she had to make a slight s-turn to final approach to correct for overshooting the runway centerline. As she flared, the airplane would not respond to control input and impacted the displaced threshold hard and skidded to rest on the right side of and short of the runway. Air traffic controllers asked the pilot to make a short final for traffic considerations and she accepted the request. They observed the airplane overshoot the runway centerline and enter a steep bank in an effort to realign with final approach. The airplane descended rapidly and impacted the ground. Post-accident examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness inspector, and a local mechanic, revealed no preimpact anomalies with the airplane that would have prevented its normal operation. The airplane sustained structural damage to both wings and the fuselage. The landing gear were sheared from the airplane.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,669 hours in all; 400 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 3,631 as pilot in command; 2,393 on instruments
- Last flight review: October 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,504.1 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 1, 2005; 22.8 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,750 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-C1C6 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PTV Porterville CA at 7:45 pm
- Destination: BFL Bakersfield CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 30R, 10,857 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 41°F (5°C)
- Altimeter: 30.17 inHg
- Observation at 7:56 pm from BFL
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.