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While on approach for landing a small airplane pilot struck a eucalyptus tree at 100 ft about 2;000 ft from the L52 runway 29 approach end.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 826605 |
| Time | |
| Date | 200903 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | L52.Airport |
| State Reference | CA |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Small Aircraft Low Wing 1 Eng Fixed Gear |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 91 |
| Flight Phase | Initial Approach |
| Route In Use | Visual Approach |
| Flight Plan | None |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying Single Pilot |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Private |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 3 Flight Crew Total 210 Flight Crew Type 30 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Conflict Airborne Conflict Deviation - Procedural FAR Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Inflight Event / Encounter CFTT / CFIT Inflight Event / Encounter Unstabilized Approach |
Narrative:
On second approach to L52; runway 29 was off centerline and according to passenger; the left wing clipped a tree top. Power was also added to clear telephone lines by a safe margin. Upon landing; it was noted that the landing light cover was broken. There were no wing deformations or any other damage as verified by a mechanic. On examination of online satellite pictures; there appears to be a single tall tree right of the centerline runway 29 that may be 100 ft tall. There was no yawing of the plane and a very slight vibration was felt. The approximate altitude was probably around 100 ft. The tree is of eucalyptus type; these trees according to online website can grow up to 200 ft. According to my estimate from satellite pictures; the tree from runway threshold is approximately 2;000 ft far. This would be directly on a 3 degree GS (at 2;000 ft; 100 ft altitude) albeit the plane was off centerline. Lack of landing guides (VASI) made height judgment above runway difficult. Unfamiliarity with airport contributed to getting off center. Prior to this incident; a landing was attempted and was not successful and a late (but no mishaps) go-around was initiated. Corrective actions: pilot should be more familiar with airport he is landing at; better height judgment; better outside observation and better short field landing techniques and a more timely go-around.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: While on approach for landing a small airplane pilot struck a Eucalyptus tree at 100 FT about 2;000 FT from the L52 Runway 29 approach end.
Narrative: On second approach to L52; Runway 29 was off centerline and according to passenger; the left wing clipped a tree top. Power was also added to clear telephone lines by a safe margin. Upon landing; it was noted that the landing light cover was broken. There were no wing deformations or any other damage as verified by a Mechanic. On examination of online satellite pictures; there appears to be a single tall tree right of the centerline Runway 29 that may be 100 FT tall. There was no yawing of the plane and a very slight vibration was felt. The approximate altitude was probably around 100 FT. The tree is of Eucalyptus type; these trees according to online website can grow up to 200 FT. According to my estimate from satellite pictures; the tree from runway threshold is approximately 2;000 FT far. This would be directly on a 3 degree GS (at 2;000 FT; 100 FT altitude) albeit the plane was off centerline. Lack of landing guides (VASI) made height judgment above runway difficult. Unfamiliarity with airport contributed to getting off center. Prior to this incident; a landing was attempted and was not successful and a late (but no mishaps) go-around was initiated. Corrective actions: Pilot should be more familiar with airport he is landing at; better height judgment; better outside observation and better short field landing techniques and a more timely go-around.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.