NTSB CEN21LA159 — 2021-03-17 · Erie, Colorado, United States

Current FAA registration · N2849M

Make / Model: PIPER PA-12
Year of manufacture: 1947 · 74 years old at event
Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 hp)
Seats / Engines: 3 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 19750106
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S A2E076

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N2849M Piper PA-12 None

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during a full-stop landing, resulting in a runway excursion and impact with a snow berm.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that while making a full-stop landing following a local flight in his tailwheel-equipped airplane and slowing on the runway centerline, the airplane began drifting to the left toward a snow berm on the edge of the runway. The pilot added power as the left main landing gear tire contacted the snow. The airplane slid into the berm and came to rest in about 8-12 inches of snow. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left elevator. The pilot reported there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions 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.

— Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
— Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained
— Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Snow/ice-Contributed to outcome

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2021_CEN21LA159.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.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (runway excursion). All research papers