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CEN10CA452

2010-07-30 · Pittsfield, Illinois, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Current FAA registration · N17MX

Make / Model
MAULE MX-7-180A
Seats / Engines
5 seats · 1 engine
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A117FD

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's loss of directional control during a precautionary off-field landing that he performed after encountering deteriorating weather conditions.

Factual narrative

The non-instrument rated pilot was on a cross-country flight when he encountered deteriorating weather conditions. The pilot was receiving flight following from air traffic control, and after discussing the weather conditions he told the controller that he was going to divert to a nearby airport. While en route to the airport, the airplane encountered increasingly lower cloud ceilings and the pilot elected to perform a precautionary off-field landing onto a county road. During the landing rollout the right main landing gear departed the road and the airplane subsequently impacted a ditch alongside the road. The fuselage primary structure and both wings were substantially damaged during the accident. A nearby airport weather observation station reported scattered clouds between 700 and 1,500 feet, an overcast ceiling at 2,100 feet, and a 5 mile ground visibility with drizzle. The non-instrument-rated pilot was on a cross-country flight when he encountered deteriorating weather conditions. The pilot was receiving flight following from air traffic control and, after discussing the weather conditions, he advised the controller that he was going to divert to a nearby airport. While en route to the airport, the airplane encountered increasingly lower cloud ceilings and the pilot elected to perform a precautionary off-field landing onto a county road. During the landing rollout the right main landing gear departed the road and the airplane subsequently impacted a ditch alongside the road. The primary fuselage structure and both wings were substantially damaged during the accident. A nearby airport weather observation station reported scattered clouds between 700 and 1,500 feet, an overcast ceiling at 2,100 feet, and a 5-mile ground visibility with drizzle. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Ceiling/visibility/precip-Low ceiling-Effect on operation
  • 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_CEN10CA452.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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