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Atlas / NTSB / CEN10CA221

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event CEN10CA221

2010-04-19 West Chicago, Illinois, United States Airport · DPA None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N7748P

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

PIPER PA-24-250

Year of manufacture

1961 · 49 years old at event

Engine

LYCOMING 0-540 SERIES (250 hp)

Seats / Engines

4 seats · 1 engine

Last airworthiness date

19611215

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S AA7B61

Registrant of record

CARDIOVASCULAR SERVICE ASSOCIATES

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during landing.

Factual narrative

The student pilot stated in a telephone interview that he had performed 7 or 8 solo landings on the same day on the same runway. He said that when the accident happened he was performing a touch and go and had touched down in the first third of the runway on the main landing wheels. When the airplane's nose was lowered and the nose landing gear contacted the ground, the airplane turned toward the right side of the runway. The pilot reported that he attempted to correct with aileron and rudder inputs but did not use the airplane's brakes. The airplane continued off of the paved runway and struck two runway lights and a taxiway sign. The pilot stated that he continued across the grass area and stopped the airplane on the adjacent taxiway. He then taxied the airplane to the ramp. No pre-impact damage was found with regard to the airplane's landing gear, nose wheel steering system, or braking system. The student pilot stated in a telephone interview that he had performed 7 or 8 solo landings on the same day on the same runway. He said that when the accident happened he was performing a touch-and-go and had touched down on the first third of the runway on the main landing wheels. When the airplane's nose was lowered and the nose landing gear contacted the ground, the airplane turned toward the right side of the runway. The pilot reported that he attempted to correct with aileron and rudder inputs, but did not use the airplane's brakes. The airplane continued off of the paved runway and struck two runway lights and a taxiway sign. The pilot stated that he continued across the grass area and stopped the airplane on the adjacent taxiway. He then taxied the airplane to the ramp. No pre-impact damage was found with regard to the airplane's landing gear, nose wheel steering system, or braking system. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2010_CEN10CA221.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.