Piper PA-38 accident near Cheswold, Delaware, June 18, 2000
On June 18, 2000 at about 2:50 pm local time, a Piper PA-38, registered N407DS, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cheswold, Delaware (Delaware Airpark 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 delayed remedial action. Factors included the instructor's failure to take positive control of the airplane, and the student's failure to maintain adequate airspeed during the approach.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 18, 2000 · about 2:50 pm local time
- Place
- Cheswold, Delaware · Delaware Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-38 · all PA-38s on the register
- Registration
- N407DS · registry record · serial 38-79A0989
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was on the final approach segment of a visual pattern, with the student pilot at the controls. The student reduced power, the airspeed bled off, and airplane began to sink. The instructor told the student to watch his airspeed, but no corrective action was taken. When the airplane was about 200 feet above the ground, the instructor initiated a go-around. The instructor felt the student push forward on the controls, while the instructor was trying to pull aft and add power. The airplane's left main landing gear became entangled in tall grass and brush. The airplane then yawed left, and impacted the ground. It skidded sideways, and came to rest 20 to 30 feet prior to the runway threshold.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 756 hours in all; 25 in this make and model; 115 in the last 90 days; 72 in the last 30 days; 679 as pilot in command; 346 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,840 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 23, 2000; 42 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,670 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 33N Cheswold DE at 2:50 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 3,715 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 75°F (24°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:55 pm from DOV, 6 miles away
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.