Piper PA-28-140 accident near Lehighton, Pennsylvania, October 23, 2004
On October 23, 2004 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-140, registered N586FL, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lehighton, Pennsylvania (Jake Arner Memorial 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot inadequate flare, and failure to recover from a bounced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 23, 2004 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lehighton, Pennsylvania · Jake Arner Memorial · 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
- N586FL · registry record · serial 28-7125444
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot was landing on a 3,000-foot-long, 60-foot-wide, asphalt, runway. He reported that the airplane landed "hard" and began to porpoise. The airplane came to a stop on the runway; however the nose gear, propeller, and engine firewall were damaged. The student pilot stated that he did not experience any mechanical malfunctions with the airplane. He reported 39.6 hours of total flight experience, which included 1.7 hours of solo flight experience.
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: 40 hours in all; 40 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 2 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,254 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 17, 2004; 56 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E3B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ABE Allentown PA at 8:00 pm
- Destination: 22N Lehighton PA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 8, 3,000 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.13 inHg
- Observation at 7:51 pm from ABE
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.