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ATL89LA132

1989-04-23 · ELKIN ARPT., North Carolina, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport ZEF

Current FAA registration · N7908U

Make / Model
CESSNA 172F
Year of manufacture
1964 · 25 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER (145 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19640926
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AABB88

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

THE FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO PROPERLY COMPENSATE FOR THE GUSTY WIND CONDITIONS DURING TAKEOFF AND THE DELAY IN HIS DECISION TO ABORT THE TAKEOFF BEFORE COLLIDING WITH TREES. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WERE THE GUSTY WIND CONDITIONS AND THE PILOT'S LACK OF EXPERIENCE AND PROFICIENCY.

Factual narrative

THE WINDS WERE GUSTING WHILE THE PILOT WAS ATTEMPTING THE TAKEOFF. HE LOST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL AND CRASHED INTO TREES ABOUT 3/4 DOWN THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT ELECTED TO ABORT THE TAKEOFF BUT DRIFTED INTO THE TREES BEFORE HE WAS ABLE TO CORRECT BACK TO THE RUNWAY. THERE WERE NO SYSTEM PROBLEMS REPORTED. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1989_ATL89LA132.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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