Event CEN17LA306

Factual narrative

On July 31, 2017, at 1158 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-28-181, N2146R, collided with a runway sign while landing at the Centennial Airport (APA), Denver, Colorado. The private pilot and passenger were not injured. The airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was registered to Plane Omdahl LLC and was being operated by the Aspen Flying Club. The private pilot was operating the airplane as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. Visual flight rules conditions existed near the accident site at the time of the accident, and a flight plan had not been filed. The flight departed from the Pueblo Memorial Airport (PUB), Pueblo, Colorado, at 1110.The pilot reported that he departed APA and flew to PUB earlier in the day. Upon touchdown at PUB, the airplane veered to the right, but he was able to keep the airplane on the runway. The pilot stated that during the return flight, the airplane once again veered sharply to the right when the nose landing gear touched down while landing on runway 35R at APA. In the process of steering the airplane back onto the runway, the airplane collided with a runway sign that separated the right main landing gear assembly. The right wing contacted the ground and the airplane veered back to the right coming to rest in the grass alongside the runway. A postaccident examination of the brakes, tires, steering linkages, struts, and torque tubes was conducted by a Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness inspector. The examination did not reveal any mechanical failure or malfunction that would have resulted in the loss of directional control. The passenger was reported to be a child who was not able to reach the rudder pedals. The wind reported at APA just prior to the accident was from 60° at 7 knots. The last maintenance performed on the brake system was on February 28, 2017, when the right brake master cylinder was replaced. The private pilot reported that the airplane veered right while landing earlier in the day. During the accident landing, the airplane again veered right when the nosewheel touched down on the runway and then exited the runway into grass. While the pilot was attempting to steer the airplane back onto the runway, it hit a runway sign, which separated the right main landing gear from the airplane. The right wing contacted the ground, and the airplane veered right again and then came to rest in the grass alongside the runway. Postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal evidence of any preimpact mechanical anomalies that would have resulted in the pilot's inability to maintain directional control. 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
• — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surface-Soft surface-Effect on operation