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GAA15CA184

2015-07-14 · Buhl, Idaho, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport U03

Current FAA registration · N3795M

Make / Model
PIPER PA-12
Year of manufacture
1947 · 68 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 hp)
Seats / Engines
3 seats · 1 engine
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A4584D

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The student/instructed pilot lost directional control during the landing roll, resulting in a runway excursion, and ground loop.

Factual narrative

The flight instructor stated that the student pilot lost directional control during the landing roll. The airplane veered off the runway to the right, the flight instructor took the controls and attempted to abort the landing. The flight instructor reported that for an unknown reason the right break was engaged, and the airplane ground looped to the right. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The flight instructor reported there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. During a postaccident examination the brake appeared to operate normally. The flight instructor stated that the student pilot lost directional control during the landing roll. The airplane veered off the runway to the right, the flight instructor took the controls and attempted to abort the landing. The flight instructor reported that for an unknown reason the right brake was engaged, and the airplane ground looped to the right. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The flight instructor reported there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. During a postaccident examination the brake appeared to operate normally. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Student/instructed pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2015_GAA15CA184.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 (runway excursion). All research papers