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CHI94LA012

1993-10-11 · WALL, South Dakota, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 6V4

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL, WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADVERTENT GROUND SWERVE. A FACTOR RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WAS: THE PILOT'S LACK OF FAMILIARITY WITH THE TYPE (MAKE AND MODEL) OF AIRPLANE.

Factual narrative

On October 11, 1993, at 1800 mountain daylight time, a Cessna A188B, N4788Q, sustained substantial damage when the left main landing gear collapsed, after the airplane departed the runway during landing rollout at the Wall Municipal Airport, Wall, South Dakota. The commercial pilot was not injured. The personal flight originated at Winner, South Dakota. No flight plan was filed, and visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time. The pilot had just purchased the airplane and was flying it to his home in Montana. He reported directional control was lost when the airplane started skidding to the right. In a written statement he said: "I was attempting a 3 point landing. I should have attempted wheel landings until [I was] more familiar with this aircraft." THE PILOT HAD JUST PURCHASED THE AIRPLANE AND WAS FLYING IT FROM THE POINT OF PURCHASE IN WINNER, SOUTH DAKOTA, TO HIS HOME IN MONTANA. WHILE LANDING AT THE FIRST EN ROUTE STOP, HE LOST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL, THE AIRPLANE DEPARTED THE RUNWAY, AND THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED. IN A STATEMENT, THE PILOT SAID HE ATTEMPTED TO MAKE A THREE POINT LANDING, WHEN HE SHOULD HAVE MADE WHEEL LANDINGS UNTIL HE WAS MORE FAMILIAR WITH THE AIRPLANE. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1993_CHI94LA012.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.