NTSB CAROL · Event
Event GAA18CA324
Registry · N7257D
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
PIPER PA-22-150
Year of manufacture
1957 · 61 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19570329
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A9B970
Registrant of record
ARCTIC AERO LLC
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The flight instructor’s improper landing flare and failure to maintain a proper descent rate during approach, which resulted in a hard landing.
Factual narrative
The flight instructor reported that, during approach at a low level, due to "wind shear" the airplane had a sudden altitude loss. The pilot increased the engine power to full but the tailwheel equipped airplane touched down "harder than normal." The airplane impacted the airstrip with a side load; the left wing and left landing gear separated. The airplane slid to a stop and came to rest upright. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The instructor pilot did not report any mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. According to the instructor, "wind shear conditions" were present on the approach. The pilot reported the wind from 180 degrees, light and variable at 7 to 10 knots. The automated weather observation station located on the airport about 8 nautical miles away reported that the wind was from 200° at 9 knots; visibility at 10 SM; cloud condition few at 11,000 ft. AGL; temperature 61°F; dew point 39°F; and barometric setting of 29.80 inches Hg. The flight instructor reported that, during approach at a low level, due to "wind shear," the tailwheel-equipped airplane suddenly lost altitude. The instructor increased the engine power to full, but the airplane touched down "harder than normal." The airplane impacted the airstrip with a side load, and the left wing and left landing gear separated from the airplane, which then slid to a stop and came to rest upright. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The instructor reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The instructor reported that the wind was from 180° and light and variable at 7 to 10 knots. 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 Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Instructor/check pilot - C
- C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Descent rate-Not attained/maintained - C
- C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained - C
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2018_GAA18CA324.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (wind shear). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Conference Paper
Optimal recovery from microburst wind shear
The flight path of a twin-jet transport aircraft is optimized in a microburst encounter during approach to landing. The objective is to execute an escape maneuver that maintains safe ground clearance …
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Contractor Report (CR)
An Examination of Aviation Accidents Associated with Turbulence, Wind Shear and Thunderstorm
The focal point of the study reported here was the definition and examination of turbulence, wind shear and thunderstorm in relation to aviation accidents.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Conference Paper
Analysis of extreme wind shear
New methods utilizing extreme value statistical theory are applied in the analysis of the largest wind component shear in a wind profile as a function of shear layer thickness and season.
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Technical Memorandum (TM)
Probabilities of zero wind shear phenomena based on Rawinsonde data records
Probabilities of zero wind shear occurence and depth based on rawinsonde data records
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Contractor Report (CR)
A Wind Shear Mechanism for Producing Sporadic E by Concentrating Minor Meteoric Ions
Wind shear mechanism for producing sporadic E layer by concentrating minor meteoric ions
- NASA NTRS 2019 · Technical Memorandum (TM)
Some aspects of wind shear in the upper atmosphere
Hydrodynamic turbulence and wind shear in upper atmosphere
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗