Event GAA17CA072

Factual narrative

According to the pilot under examination, he was to accomplish a short field landing to the runway 17 numbers, during his single engine airplane flight instructor practical examination. He reported that during the transition from final to the flare, the bottom of the fuselage struck an aircraft traffic monitoring camera system. The camera system was located about 125 ft. north of the runway 17 threshold, and stood about 8 inches in height. After striking the camera, the pilot added power and landed the airplane on the runway 17 numbers. There were no NOTAM's regarding the use of the aircraft traffic monitoring system issued at the time of the accident. However, the next day a NOTAM regarding the deployment of the camera system was issued by the airport manager. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing spar. The pilot reported that there were no pre-accident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. According to the pilot under examination, he was to accomplish a short-field landing to the runway 17 numbers during his single-engine airplane flight instructor practical examination. He reported that, during the transition from final to the flare, the bottom of the fuselage struck an aircraft traffic monitoring camera system. The camera system was located about 125 ft north of the runway 17 threshold and was about 8 inches high. After striking the camera, the pilot added power and landed the airplane on the runway 17 numbers. There were no NOTAMs regarding the use of the aircraft traffic monitoring camera system issued at the time of the accident. However, the next day, the airport manager issued a NOTAM regarding the deployment of the camera system. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing spar. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

• C Organizational issues-Management-Policy/procedure-Adequacy of policy/proc-Airport - C
• C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Ground equipment-Effect on equipment - C