NTSB CAROL · Event
Event CHI04CA170
Registry · N55930
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
PIPER PA-28-140
Year of manufacture
1973 · 31 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19730606
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A723B4
Registrant of record
LAFRANCE TROY R
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot's inadequate compensation for wind conditions which led to his loss of aircraft control. Factors were the wind gusts, the ditch, and the fence.
Factual narrative
On July 4, 2004, about 2230 central daylight time, a Piper PA28-140, N55930, piloted by a private pilot, was substantially damaged when it struck a fence after it went off the left side of runway 34 (4,400 feet by 75 feet, asphalt), at the Rush City Regional Airport, Rush City, Minnesota. The 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight was operating in night visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. No injuries were reported. The local flight originated about 2200. The pilot reported that during the landing approach, the airplane experienced gusty winds. He stated that just before touchdown, the airplane was blown left of the runway centerline and he decided to execute a go-around. He said that as he added power, the airplane touched down and was pulled to the left and off of the runway. He stated that he cut the power and went through a ditch and a barbed wire fence before coming to rest. The winds at 2235 were recorded as: 360 degrees magnetic at 10 knots, gusting to 15 knots. The airplane was damaged when it went off the left side of runway 34 and struck a ditch and a fence. The pilot reported that just before touchdown, the airplane was blown left of the runway centerline and he decided to execute a go-around. He said that as he added power, the airplane touched down and was pulled to the left and off of the runway. He stated that he cut the power and went through a ditch and a barbed wire fence before coming to rest. The winds were recorded as: 360 degrees magnetic at 10 knots, gusting to 15 knots. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2004_CHI04CA170.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (go-around). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- NASA NTRS 2025 · Conference Paper
A Training Study to Improve Monitoring During A Go-Around
As part of an FAA program to improve go-around (GA) safety, we were asked to determine if we could improve the performance of the Pilot Monitoring (PM) during a GA maneuver.
- Flight Safety Foundation 2024 · FSF / AeroSafety World
Go-Around Safety Forum Findings
Foundation Go-Around Safety Forum technical findings — examines why pilots fail to execute go-arounds when criteria are met (stabilized approach gate not met, energy state out of envelope, traffic con…
- Semantic Scholar 2022 · Article (Journal of Safety Research)
Go-around accidents and general aviation safety.
INTRODUCTION Changes in General Aviation (GA) accident rates, specifically in the go-around phase, are examined by comparing the number of accidents, the proportion of fatal accidents, and the proport…
- Semantic Scholar 2021 · Article (Aerospace)
Classification and Analysis of Go-Arounds in Commercial Aviation Using ADS-B Data
Go-arounds are a necessary aspect of commercial aviation and are conducted after a landing attempt has been aborted. It is necessary to conduct go-arounds in the safest possible manner, as go-arounds …
- NASA NTRS 2021 · Accepted Manuscript (Version with final changes)
Go-Around Criteria Refinement for Transport Category Aircraft
Presently, airline pilots are trained to go around if, when lower than 500 ft above the ground, they are outside of a handful of parameters such as airspeed, position, and rate of descent.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Conference Paper
Validation of Proposed Go-Around Criteria Under Various Environmental Conditions
This paper evaluates the effects of environmental conditions on touchdown performance under varying approach states and validates proposed go-around criteria developed using data from a previously con…
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗