Piper PA-28-181 accident near Sevierville, Tennessee, August 30, 2007
On August 30, 2007 at about 5:40 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-181, registered N3077Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sevierville, Tennessee (Seymour Air Park airport). 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 misjudged his speed and distance resulting in an overrun. Contributing to the accident was the wet turf runway and the lack of any information in the pilot operating handbook regarding landing distance on a wet turf runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 30, 2007 · about 5:40 pm local time
- Place
- Sevierville, Tennessee · Seymour Air Park · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-181 · all PA-28-181s on the register
- Registration
- N3077Q · no longer on the register · serial 28-7790434
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot of the Piper PA-28 cancelled his instrument flight rules clearance and descended for a visual flight rules approach to the 2,300-foot -long turf airstrip, where he knew it had previously rained. He conducted a low pass along the runway to determine airport conditions. He observed the wind sock to be "limp," and did not see any standing water on the runway. He completed another circuit of the traffic pattern and flew a "stable approach" using full flaps. The pilot stated that on final approach he had a "normal sight picture...with sufficient runway for normal ground roll," and that touchdown occurred with 1,500 feet of runway remaining. After touchdown, the pilot recognized the reduced braking effectiveness due to the wet grass, and applied heavy braking. The airplane overran the runway, crossed a road, and impacted trees. For a dry paved runway, the landing performance charts in the Pilot Operating Handbook (POH) indicated a total landing distance of approximately 1,300 feet, which included a ground roll of approximately 800 feet. The POH did not contain any qualitative or quantitative landing distance information for turf, wet, or wet turf runways.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 366 hours in all; 141 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 265 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,988 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 1, 2007; 95 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,550 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4M (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SCX Oneida TN at 4:58 pm
- Destination: TN20 Seymour TN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 25, 2,300 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 700 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 5:33 pm from TYS, 10 miles away
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.