Ercoupe 415-CD, N3884H: Accident occurred August 09, 2016 in Eminence, Indiana

http://registry.faa.gov/N3884H

FAA Flight Standards District Office:  FAA Indianapolis FSDO-11

NTSB Identification: CEN16CA317
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Tuesday, August 09, 2016 in Eminence, IN
Probable Cause Approval Date: 09/22/2016
Aircraft: ERCOUPE 415, registration: N3884H
Injuries: 1 Uninjured.

NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.

The private rated pilot reported that he flew a normal traffic pattern to the grass strip airport. During the final landing approach, he was lined up with the runway but a little bit low for the approach. He stated that he knew he was low and for an unknown reason he did not advance the throttle to arrest the airplane's descent. This resulted in the airplane's landing gear contacting the bean field. When the gear contacted the beans, the airplane nosed down into the ground and was damaged. The airplane came to rest on the end of the grass runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the firewall and fuselage. The pilot was not injured. When asked if he experienced any mechanical difficulties with the airplane, he responded that there were none and that the airplane was operating perfectly. Based on this information the pilot failed to maintain a proper glide path during the landing approach and then failed to use available engine power to arrest the descent, resulting in an undershoot and collision with terrain.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The pilot's failure to maintain a proper glide path during the landing approach and his failure to use available engine power to arrest the descent, resulting in an undershoot and collision with terrain.