Skip to content

ERA22LA110

2022-01-18 · Angier, North Carolina, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 78NC

Current FAA registration · N254RM

Make / Model
MILLER ROGER THATCHER CX4
Engine
AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG
Seats / Engines
1 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20110613
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A267DD

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s encounter with a flock of birds on final approach, which resulted in a loss of control, an aerodynamic stall and spin, and impact with trees and terrain.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that following a local flight, on final approach to land, about ¼ mile from the runway, he glanced down at the airspeed indicator, and then glanced up and “all of a sudden” a flock of birds flew into the airplane. He stated it was “like a wall” or like a “machine gun” going off in his flight path. He reported that the birds collided with the airplane and after that point he “was a passenger”. He recalled the airplane entered an aerodynamic stall and spin and subsequently descended and impacted trees and terrain. The fuselage and wings sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Animal(s)/bird(s)-Effect on personnel
  • — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Angle of attack-Capability exceeded
  • — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Animal(s)/bird(s)-Effect on equipment

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2022_ERA22LA110.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 (stall, loss of control). All research papers