CEN20CA161
2020-04-26 · Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed
Airport FLY
Current FAA registration · N1598A
- Make / Model
- PIPER PA-20
- Year of manufacture
- 1952 · 68 years old at event
- Engine
- LYCOMING 0-290 SERIES (140 hp)
- Seats / Engines
- 4 seats · 1 engine
- Last airworthiness date
- 19561212
- ADS-B equipped
- Yes — Mode-S A0EF0F
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The flight instructor's improper landing flare, which resulted in a bounced landing, and his subsequent loss of directional control.
Factual narrative
The flight instructor of a tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that he attempted a three-point, full stall landing, with a right-quartering crosswind of about 4 knots. During the touchdown there was a small bounce which the flight instructor described as minor and controllable. The airplane touched down again, and he applied further aft yoke which resulted in another small bounce and final touchdown. Once the airplane was on the runway, he applied full aft yoke, and the airplane immediately veered to the right and exited the runway. The flight instructor attempted to correct with full left rudder, but the airplane exited the right side of the runway and contacted terrain with the left wingtip and nose. The airplane came to rest upright. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing and left aileron. Examination of the airplane revealed no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. The flight instructor reported that, while demonstrating a three-point, full-stall landing with a 4-knot right-quartering crosswind, the airplane bounced slightly but that it "seemed minor and controllable." The airplane touched down again, and he pulled the yoke further aft, which resulted in another small bounce. Once the airplane was on the runway, he pulled the yoke full aft, and the airplane immediately veered right off the runway. The instructor attempted to correct by applying full left rudder to no avail. The left wingtip and nose struck the ground, and the airplane came to rest upright. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing and aileron. A Federal Aviation Administer inspector and the pilot examined the airplane and found no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions 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-Instructor/check pilot - C
- C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
- C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained - C
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2020_CEN20CA161.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
Search this event elsewhere
External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.
- TallyAero Live Wire Aviation press
- NTSB CAROL Agency ↗
- NTSB Docket Agency ↗
- Aviation Safety Network Aviation press ↗
- Kathryn's Report Aviation press ↗
- Aviation Herald Aviation press ↗
- AVweb Aviation press ↗
- Pilots of America Community ↗
- Reddit /r/flying Community ↗
- FlightAware Aviation press ↗
- AOPA accident database Aviation press ↗
- Google News News ↗
- DuckDuckGo News ↗
Related research
Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall). All research papers
- NASA NTRS 2026 · Conference Paper Computational Analysis of Steady State Aerodynamics of Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Configuration in Deep Stall
This study presents a computational investigation of steady state aerodynamics of the Subsonic Ultra-Green Aircraft Research (SUGAR) Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) configuration over a wide range …
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint Automating Bird Diverter Installation through Multi-Aerial Robots and Signal Temporal Logic Specifications
This paper tackles the task assignment and trajectory generation problem for bird diverter installation using a fleet of multi-rotors.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint Variation of Critical Crystallization Pressure for the Formation of Square Ice in Graphene Nanocapillaries
Two-dimensional square ice in graphene nanocapillaries at room temperature is a fascinating phenomenon and has been confirmed experimentally.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint Polycrystallinity enhances stress build-up around ice
Damage caused by freezing wet, porous materials is a widespread problem, but is hard to predict or control. Here, we show that polycrystallinity makes a great difference to the stress build-up process…
- arXiv 2022 · arXiv preprint Enhanced Prediction of Three-dimensional Finite Iced Wing Separated Flow Near Stall
Icing on three-dimensional wings causes severe flow separation near stall. Standard improved delayed detached eddy simulation (IDDES) is unable to correctly predict the separating reattaching flow due…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2021 · Journal article (JAAER) Analysis on the Negative Emotional, Physiological, and Cognitive Responses Elicited from of the Activation of a Stall Alarm
Failing to identify an aerodynamic stall can lead to the inability of an aircraft to sustain flight. To warn pilots of an impending or fully-developed stall, many aircraft have safety devices installe…