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GAA15CA125

2015-06-06 · Waterloo, Iowa, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport ALO

Current FAA registration · N5067E

Make / Model
CESSNA 180B
Year of manufacture
1958 · 57 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19581121
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A6538C

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The incorrect installation of the secondary seat stop reel which resulted in the pilot's loss of control when the seat moved full aft during takeoff.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that during the takeoff roll, the seat slid to its full aft position. He was unable to reach the control pedals and attempted to abort the takeoff. The pilot was not able to control the airplane and it yawed left into a ground loop. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right horizontal stabilizer, right wing, and right aileron. A postaccident examination by the NTSB Investigator-in-Charge and Textron Aviation revealed the secondary seat stop reel was not installed according to the manufacturer's guidelines. The incorrect installation prevented the primary seat adjustment mechanism from fully engaging into the holes in the seat rail. The pilot reported that during the takeoff roll, the seat slid to its full aft position. He was unable to reach the control pedals and attempted to abort the takeoff. The pilot was not able to control the airplane and it yawed left into a ground loop. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right horizontal stabilizer, right wing, and right aileron. A postaccident examination by the NTSB Investigator-in-Charge and Textron Aviation revealed the secondary seat stop reel was not installed according to the manufacturer's guidelines. The incorrect installation prevented the primary seat adjustment mechanism from fully engaging into the holes in the seat rail. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Equipment/furnishings-Flight compartment equipment-Incorrect service/maintenance - C
  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Maintenance-Installation-Maintenance personnel - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2015_GAA15CA125.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