Piper J3C-65 accident near Sandpoint, Idaho, July 24, 2021
On July 24, 2021 at about 4:30 pm local time, a 1947 Piper J3C-65, registered N946PD, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Sandpoint, Idaho (Sandpoint airport). It was a personal 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during landing with a crosswind which, resulted in a runway excursion and impact with terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 24, 2021 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Sandpoint, Idaho · Sandpoint · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper J3C-65, built 1947 · all J3C-65s on the register
- Registration
- N946PD · registry record · serial 22698
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot in the tail wheel-equipped airplane reported that, while performing a touch-and-go landing with a slight crosswind from the right, the airplane drifted off the left side of the runway and into a depression in the terrain. The airplane collided with a berm which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
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
What happened, in order
- Loss of control on ground during takeoff defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Crosswind › Effect on operation
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 8,200 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 45 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 8,000 as pilot in command; 300 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 15, 2021
- Medical certificate: BasicMed (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
Passenger
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 605 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 23, 2020; 53 hours since
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental Motors O-200A (piston); 605 hours total
- Operator: Dickerson Aircraft INC
The flight
- Departed from: ID24 Sable ID at 4:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 02/2, 5,501 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.19 inHg
- Observation at 9:15 am from KSZT
Weather report (METAR): METAR KSZT 241615Z AUTO 0000KT 10SM CLR 20/04 A3019 RMK AO2
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number WPR21LA302.