Piper PA-30 accident near Hilo, Hawaii, January 28, 1996
On January 28, 1996 at about 9:46 pm local time, a Piper PA-30, registered N7358Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hilo, Hawaii (Hilo International 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Inadequate supervision of the student pilot by the flight instructor during an attempted go-around from a balked landing, which resulted in a loss of directional control and collision with a distance remaining marker.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 28, 1996 · about 9:46 pm local time
- Place
- Hilo, Hawaii · Hilo International · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-30 · all PA-30s on the register
- Registration
- N7358Y · registry record · serial 30-413
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot/flight instructor reported that the student pilot was in the left seat operating the controls as they approached for landing with the left engine idled to simulate zero thrust. The student flared the aircraft for landing too high above the runway, and the flight instructor called for a go-around. The student advanced power on the right engine, and the aircraft yawed about 30 degrees to the left. The flight instructor took control of the aircraft and reduced power to idle on both engines as the aircraft veered off the runway to the left about 5,000 feet from the landing threshold. The aircraft landed in a grass area off the runway, and the right wing struck a distance remaining marker about 3 feet inboard from the wing tip. The flight instructor regained control, stopping the aircraft in the grass area.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 4,904 hours in all; 337 in this make and model; 36 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 4,650 as pilot in command; 1,943 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,885 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 15, 1995; 87 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-B1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ITO at 7:50 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 9,800 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,200 ft; scat at 1,800 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:48 pm from ITO
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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.
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.