NTSB CAROL · Event
Event CEN12CA278
Registry · N102GW
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
VAN'S AIRCRAFT RV-4
Engine
LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19860503
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A00CCD
Registrant of record
JONES JAMIE M
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane during takeoff in gusty wind conditions.
Factual narrative
The airplane encountered a wind gust on takeoff, which lifted the right wing and caused the airplane to roll left. The airplane then lifted off the ground about 2-3 feet and the pilot tried to abort the takeoff. The airplane touched down on the left landing gear as it was drifting to the left, and the gear collapsed. Then, the right landing gear collapsed and the left wing struck a runway light as it exited the side of the runway. The pilot said the firewall, left wing spar, and an engine mount were damaged. The pilot reported there were no mechanical anomalies with the airframe or engine. He also stated that he should have been more aware of the possibility of sudden wind gusts and wind shear during takeoff. The airplane encountered a wind gust on takeoff roll, which lifted the right wing and caused the airplane to roll left. The airplane then lifted off the ground about 2-3 feet, and the pilot aborted the takeoff. The airplane touched down on the left landing gear as it was drifting to the left, and the gear collapsed. Then, the right landing gear collapsed, and the left wing struck a runway light as the airplane exited the side of the runway. The pilot said that the firewall, left wing spar, and an engine mount were damaged. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical anomalies with the airframe or engine. He also stated that he should have been more aware of the possibility of sudden wind gusts and wind shear during takeoff. 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 Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
- C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-(general)-Not attained/maintained - C
- — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Response/compensation
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2012_CEN12CA278.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (wind shear). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Conference Paper
Optimal recovery from microburst wind shear
The flight path of a twin-jet transport aircraft is optimized in a microburst encounter during approach to landing. The objective is to execute an escape maneuver that maintains safe ground clearance …
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Contractor Report (CR)
An Examination of Aviation Accidents Associated with Turbulence, Wind Shear and Thunderstorm
The focal point of the study reported here was the definition and examination of turbulence, wind shear and thunderstorm in relation to aviation accidents.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Conference Paper
Analysis of extreme wind shear
New methods utilizing extreme value statistical theory are applied in the analysis of the largest wind component shear in a wind profile as a function of shear layer thickness and season.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Technical Memorandum (TM)
Probabilities of zero wind shear phenomena based on Rawinsonde data records
Probabilities of zero wind shear occurence and depth based on rawinsonde data records
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Contractor Report (CR)
A Wind Shear Mechanism for Producing Sporadic E by Concentrating Minor Meteoric Ions
Wind shear mechanism for producing sporadic E layer by concentrating minor meteoric ions
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Technical Memorandum (TM)
Some aspects of wind shear in the upper atmosphere
Hydrodynamic turbulence and wind shear in upper atmosphere
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗