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Atlas / NTSB / CEN13CA138

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event CEN13CA138

2013-01-20 Erie, Colorado, United States Airport · KEIK Minor 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N2323D

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

CESSNA 170B

Year of manufacture

1952 · 61 years old at event

Engine

CONT MOTOR C145 SERIES (145 hp)

Seats / Engines

4 seats · 1 engine

Last airworthiness date

19551214

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S A212B3

Registrant of record

53U AVIATION LLC

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane while taking off in gusting wind conditions.

Factual narrative

During the takeoff roll from runway 15, the airplane encountered a gust of wind from the left. The airplane departed the runway and nosed over, coming to rest inverted. The vertical stabilizer and firewall were substantially damaged. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. Wind at the time of the accident was recorded as 080 degrees at 14 knots gusting to 22 knots. During the takeoff roll from runway 15, the airplane encountered a gust of wind from the left. The airplane departed the runway and nosed over, coming to rest inverted. The vertical stabilizer and firewall were substantially damaged. The pilot reported no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. At the time of the accident, the nearest facility recorded the wind from 080 degrees at 14 knots gusting to 22 knots. 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-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2013_CEN13CA138.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.