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GAA16CA037

2015-10-31 · Perry, New York, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 01G

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The student pilot's failure to maintain vigilance, which resulted in a loss of directional control during the landing roll.

Factual narrative

The student pilot reported that during the landing roll he heard something fall in the back seat. He looked back; when he looked forward again the airplane had veered to the right. The student pilot attempted to correct with the rudder, but reported that he "overcorrected" to the left and then to the right, and then "hammered" on the brakes. Subsequently the airplane skid off the runway to the right and impacted a ditch. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot reported that there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. The student pilot reported that during the landing roll he heard something fall in the back seat. He looked back; when he looked forward again the airplane had veered to the right. The student pilot attempted to correct with the rudder, but reported that he "overcorrected" to the left and then to the right, and then "hammered" on the brakes.  Subsequently the airplane skid off the runway to the right and impacted a ditch. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot reported that there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Task monitoring/vigilance-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional 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_2015_GAA16CA037.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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