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GAA16CA042

2015-10-14 · Amarillo, Texas, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport H81

N19CH has since been reassigned. It is now registered to a different aircraft (AVID AIRCRAFT AVID MAGNUM), which was not involved in this event.

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The loss of directional control during taxi to the runway as a result of insufficient brake fluid level in the right brake master cylinder, resulting in a taxiway excursion and collision with a drainage culvert.

Factual narrative

According to the flight instructor, during the taxi to the runway, the pilot receiving instruction stated that he did not have authority in the right brake. The flight instructor reported that he too applied pressure to the right brake to no avail. He reported that the airplane exited the runway to the left, impacted a drainage culvert and the left main landing gear collapsed. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing spar. The airplane brake system was examined by the operator's Director of Maintenance, who determined that the right brake master cylinder was low on fluid causing the brakes to be weak. The last maintenance performed on the brakes occurred on 7/8/2015 at which time both brake discs were replaced and all the brake pads were replaced. The total time on the airplane since the last maintenance on the brakes was 33.6 hours. According to the flight instructor, during the taxi to the runway, the pilot receiving instruction stated that he did not have authority in the right brake. The flight instructor reported that he too applied pressure to the right brake to no avail. He reported that the airplane exited the runway to the left, impacted a drainage culvert and the left main landing gear collapsed. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing spar. The airplane brake system was examined by the operator's Director of Maintenance, who determined that the right brake master cylinder was low on fluid causing the brakes to be weak. The last maintenance performed on the brakes occurred on 7/8/2015 at which time both brake discs were replaced and all the brake pads were replaced. The total time on the airplane since the last maintenance on the brakes was 33.6 hours. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Landing gear system-Brake-Inoperative - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • C Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-(general)-Fluid level - C
  • — Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Landing gear system-Brake-Not serviced/maintained
  • — Personnel issues-Task performance-Maintenance-Scheduled/routine maintenance-Maintenance personnel
  • — Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Instructor/check pilot
  • — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-(general)-Contributed to outcome

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2015_GAA16CA042.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (maintenance). All research papers