The solo student pilot reported that, while practicing a soft field takeoff at the airport in Cortland, New York, the Piper PA28 entered into ground effect and drifted left of runway center line. The airplane continued to drift left, hit a snowbank, then landed in the snow adjacent the runway and nosed over.
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and right wing. The student pilot sustained minor injures.
The student pilot reported that there were no pre-accident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Probable Cause: The student pilot’s failure to maintain the runway heading during takeoff, which resulted in hitting a snowbank and a subsequent nose-over.
This December 2019 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.
NTSB:
“…the nose gear came off the ground followed by the mains, I then pitched the nose down to stay in ground effect and noticed the plane was left of the center of the runway so I increased the amount of right rudder, the plane suddenly pitched up and to the left in what seemed like a strong gust of wind, because of the low airspeed..”
…and the plane continued drifting left.
Very mysterious: Winds were “light & variable”. I’m thinking a rouge wind gust strong enough to push him off the left side, even with “increased” right rudder, would have also ‘weather vaned’ his nose to the right, not “pitched him up and to the left”.
Anyway, check out the pix; a tribute to just how stout the Cherokee is.