This February 2009 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
Aircraft: Piper Cherokee. Injuries: None. Location: Fallbrook, Calif. Aircraft damage: Minor.
What reportedly happened: The pilot was attempting to land. He entered an extended right base leg for the 2,160-foot runway. The winds were reported as three knots directly lined up with the runway. Prior to being established on the base leg, he set full flaps and lowered the landing gear. As the airplane turned onto final, the pilot felt the airplane was slightly high but the speed and descent rate were good. The airplane floated and the touchdown was slightly farther down the runway than the pilot anticipated. The pilot said as the airplane rolled out he approached a slight mound in the runway, which created an optical illusion of the runway’s end being closer than it was. He pilot applied the brakes so hard they locked and the airplane skidded off the runway into the brush.
Probable cause: The improper use of the brakes and failure to maintain control of the airplane during landing rollout.
For more information: NTSB.gov
Fallbrook is not easy. The short field challenge tunnel vision caused the pilot to forget how much runway was left. A low pass might have helpped with perspective.
The PA 28R will land in less than 1000 feet with the gear and flaps down.
Another retractable Cherokee… that’s actually a Piper Arrow. PA-28R-200 is the designation for an Arrow, which has retractable gear. PA-28 (w/o the R) is a Cherokee.