NTSB CAROL · Event
Event GAA18CA292
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The student pilot’s improper landing flare in tailwind conditions, which resulted in a hard landing.
Factual narrative
The student pilot reported that, during a solo flight, while landing, she encountered a gust of wind that "tilted" the airplane to the right. She attempted to maintain centerline, but the left main landing gear touched down hard. She then taxied to park without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing spar. The student pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The automated weather observation system located about 8 miles to the southeast of the accident airport reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 290° at 3 knots. The student pilot landed on runway 11. The student pilot reported that, during a solo flight, while landing, she encountered a wind gust that "tilted" the airplane right. She attempted to maintain centerline, but the left main landing gear touched down hard. She then taxied to park without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left-wing spar. The student pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The automated weather observation system located about 8 miles southeast of the accident airport reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 290° at 3 knots. The student pilot landed the airplane on runway 11. 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 Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained - C
- C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Student/instructed pilot - C
- — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Tailwind-Effect on operation
- — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Effect on operation
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2018_GAA18CA292.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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