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ERA17CA089

2017-01-14 · Mobile, Alabama, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport BFM

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to maintain airplane control during the initial climb.

Factual narrative

According to the pilot, the single-engine airplane was equipped with a short takeoff and landing system and before takeoff, he "lowered the full length flaperons to 30°." The airplane climbed out at 70 mph, and as it reached an altitude of 75 ft above ground level, it encountered a crosswind gust from the right. The right wing pitched up and the pilot attempted to recover the airplane by applying right aileron, followed by right rudder, and then lowering the nose; however, he could not stop the roll to the left. The airplane collided with the ground adjacent to the runway, and sustained substantial damage to its airframe. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The reported wind condition at the departure airport at the time of the accident, were winds variable at 3 knots. According to the pilot, the single-engine airplane was equipped with a short takeoff and landing system, and before takeoff, he "lowered the full length flaperons to 30°." The airplane climbed out at 70 mph, and as it reached an altitude of 75 ft above ground level, it encountered a crosswind gust from the right. The right wing pitched up, and the pilot attempted to recover the airplane by applying right aileron, followed by right rudder, and then lowering the nose; however, he could not stop the roll to the left. The airplane collided with the ground adjacent to the runway and sustained substantial damage to its airframe. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The reported wind condition at the departure airport at the time of the accident was variable at 3 knots. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Lateral/bank control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2017_ERA17CA089.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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