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GAA18CA323

2018-06-02 · Fuquay Varina, North Carolina, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 5W5

Current FAA registration · N1305B

Make / Model
CESSNA 172S
Year of manufacture
2007 · 11 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING IO-360-L2A (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20071211
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A07E3A

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The flight instructor’s failure to maintain adequate clearance from overgrown brush during taxi, which resulted in entanglement with the brush and a subsequent impact with a tree.

Factual narrative

The flight instructor reported that, after demonstrating a simulated emergency landing, he taxied the airplane off the runway and prepared to back taxi for departure. While taxiing, the instructor and student monitored the right-wing tip clearance to the overgrown brush on the right side of the runway, but the right-wing became entangled and the airplane veered to the right. The instructor added left rudder and brake, but the airplane impacted a ditch. Postaccident examination revealed that the right wing struck a tree and sustained substantial damage. The instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The instructor added in a postaccident interview that the airport did not have pavement markings, so he used a pavement crack down the middle of the taxiway as a reference. He added that the entangled brush near the location the wing struck a tree appeared to be more overgrown than other areas along the taxiway. The flight instructor reported that, after demonstrating a simulated emergency landing, he taxied the airplane off the runway and prepared to back taxi for departure. While taxiing, the instructor and student monitored the right-wing tip clearance to the overgrown brush on the right side of the runway, but the right wing became entangled, and the airplane veered right. The instructor added left rudder and brake, but the airplane impacted a ditch. Postaccident examination revealed that the right wing struck a tree and sustained substantial damage. The instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring environment-Instructor/check pilot - C
  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Terrain-(general)-Effect on operation - C
  • — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Tree(s)-Contributed to outcome

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2018_GAA18CA323.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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