Event ERA14CA155

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that his airplane was cleared to land on a runway with a 50-degree, 8-knot crosswind. At 10 to 20 feet above the runway, a "gust" blew the airplane to its left, the left wing struck the ground, the right wing struck the ground, and the airplane came to rest with substantial damage to the wings and the airframe. When asked, the pilot said the accident could have been prevented by requesting a runway with more favorable wind. He also reported that there were no mechanical deficiencies with the airplane that would have prevented normal operation. The pilot reported that his airplane was cleared to land on a runway with a 50-degree, 8-knot crosswind. At 10 to 20 feet above the runway, a "gust" blew the airplane to its left, the left wing struck the ground, the right wing struck the ground, and the airplane came to rest with substantial damage to the wings and the airframe. When asked, the pilot said the accident could have been prevented by requesting a runway with more favorable wind. He also reported that there were no mechanical deficiencies with the airplane that would have prevented normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

• C Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Crosswind-Response/compensation - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-(general)-Not attained/maintained - C