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GAA16CA150

2016-01-30 · La Junta, Colorado, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport LHX

Current FAA registration · N2567U

Make / Model
CESSNA 172D
Year of manufacture
1963 · 53 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER (145 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19630315
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A27128

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's decision to take off with a tailwind, and exceed the critical angle of attack, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and impact with the ground.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that during a night takeoff, shortly after the airplane lifted off the runway, he "felt a force" on the tail. He further reported that the angle of attack changed to an "extreme angle", the airspeed decreased, and the stall warning horn was audible. Subsequently the left wing impacted the ground, which resulted in substantial damage to the left wing. According to the pilot there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. A review of recorded data from the automated weather observation station located on the airport revealed that, at the time of the accident, conditions were wind 30 degrees at 19 knots, wind gust 27 knots. The airplane was departing on runway 26. The pilot reported that during a night takeoff, shortly after the airplane lifted off the runway, he "felt a force" on the tail. He further reported that the angle of attack changed to an "extreme angle", the airspeed decreased, and the stall warning horn was audible. Subsequently the left wing impacted the ground, which resulted in substantial damage to the left wing. According to the pilot there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. A review of recorded data from the automated weather observation station located on the airport revealed that, at the time of the accident, conditions were wind 30 degrees at 19 knots, wind gust 27 knots. The airplane was departing on runway 26. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Pilot - C
  • C Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Tailwind-Ability to respond/compensate - C
  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Angle of attack-Capability exceeded - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2016_GAA16CA150.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). All research papers