Piper PA-28R-200 accident near Oxnard, California, September 7, 1996
On September 7, 1996 at about 8:41 pm local time, a Piper PA-28R-200, registered N41331, was substantially damaged in an accident near Oxnard, California (Oxnard 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
the instructor's inadequate supervision of the flight, and his delay in taking the controls and initiating a go-around. The student pilot's failure to maintain runway alignment and the proximity of the runway remaining marker were related factors.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 7, 1996 · about 8:41 pm local time
- Place
- Oxnard, California · Oxnard · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28R-200 · all PA-28R-200s on the register
- Registration
- N41331 · registry record · serial 28R-7435169
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During an approach to land, the student was performing a no flap slip, when the flight instructor (CFI) noticed the airplane was aligned with the edge of the runway, with low airspeed and a high rate of sink. When a collision with a runway remaining marker appeared imminent, the CFI took the controls and initiated a go-around. During the go-around, they felt a bump that they thought to be a hard landing. As they continued the go-around, the Oxnard tower controller advised the pilots that the airplane had collided with the runway marker. The pilots returned to the Camarillo airport, where they landed without further incident. An inspection revealed damage to the right wing. The runway remaining marker was also damaged.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 972 hours in all; 179 in this make and model; 195 in the last 90 days; 104 in the last 30 days; 877 as pilot in command; 341 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,479 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 15, 1996; 54 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,650 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-C1C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OXR at 7:15 pm
- Destination: CMA Camarillo CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 5,950 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 11 knots
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:47 pm from OXR
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.