CEN20CA040

Factual narrative

The private pilot reported that he checked aviation weather services and an automated weather broadcast before departing with a passenger on a local sightseeing flight. As the flight was returning to land, the pilot listened to the automated weather broadcast at a local airport to confirm wind direction and speed. The destination airport windsock was not operational. The broadcasted weather indicated there would be a left quartering headwind, and the wave direction on the surface of the lake surrounding the airport corroborated this wind condition. The pilot stated that the wind was gusty, but he was able to touch down smoothly on the runway. The airplane encountered a "strong" wind gust from the right side, and the airplane headed left towards a ditch. The pilot increased the throttle to perform an aborted landing. The airplane gained altitude and avoided impacting the ditch, a parked airplane, and a fence. However, the wing struck a small tree, and the airplane "flipped" at that point and sustained substantial fuselage and wing damage. The pilot stated there was no mechanical malfunction/failure of the airplane during the flight. The pilot reported that, while on final approach, he listened to the automated weather broadcast at a local airport to confirm wind direction and speed. The broadcast weather indicated that there would be a left quartering headwind, and the wave direction on the surface of the lake surrounding the airport corroborated this information. The pilot stated that the wind was gusting, but he was able to touch down smoothly on the runway. The airplane encountered a "strong" wind gust from the right and then headed left toward a ditch. The pilot increased the throttle to conduct an aborted landing. The airplane gained altitude and avoided impacting the ditch; however, the wing struck a tree, and the airplane flipped over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Climb rate-Not attained/maintained - C
• C Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Effect on operation - C
• C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Tree(s)-Effect on operation - C