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GAA17CA175

2017-03-02 · Greenville, Maine, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 3B1

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control while taxiing in gusting crosswind conditions.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that after a normal landing in gusting headwind conditions, he turned onto an intersecting runway which resulted in gusting crosswind conditions. He added that he positioned the flight controls to compensate for the crosswind, but after taxiing about 150 ft. on the runway the left wing lifted, the airplane veered to right, and nosed over on snow-covered terrain. The vertical stabilizer sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The automated weather observation station at the accident airport, about the time of the accident, recorded wind 300° at 13 knots, gusting 28 knots. The pilot reported that he was taxiing on runway 3. The pilot reported that, after a normal landing in gusting headwind conditions, he turned onto an intersecting runway, which resulted in gusting crosswind conditions. He added that he positioned the flight controls to compensate for the crosswind but that, after taxiing about 150 ft on the runway, the left wing lifted, and the airplane veered to the right and then nosed over on snow-covered terrain. The vertical stabilizer sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The automated weather observation station at the accident airport, about the time of the accident, recorded wind from 300° at 13 knots, gusting to 28 knots. The pilot reported that he was taxiing on runway 3. 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-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Crosswind-Ability to respond/compensate
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Ability to respond/compensate
  • — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Terrain-Snowy/icy terrain-Contributed to outcome

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2017_GAA17CA175.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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