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GAA18CA356

2018-06-18 · Winnsboro, South Carolina, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport FDW

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor’s improper decision to provide instruction in an airplane with only one control stick.

Factual narrative

According to the instructor in the light sport airplane, the pilot in the left seat had not flown for quite some time and was receiving instruction to complete a flight review. The airplane was equipped with a single control stick. During the landing flare, the pilot applied forward stick and the airplane impacted the runway. The nose landing gear and the right main landing gear collapsed. The airplane exited the right side of the runway and came to a stop in the grass safety area. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the engine mounts and the lower fuselage. The instructor asserted that he should have refused to instruct in an airplane with only one control stick. Both pilots reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. According to the flight instructor in the light sport airplane, the pilot in the left seat had not flown for a while and was receiving instruction to complete a flight review. The airplane was equipped with a single control stick. During the landing flare, the pilot applied forward stick, and the airplane impacted the runway hard. The nose landing gear and the right main landing gear collapsed. The airplane exited the right side of the runway and came to a stop in the grass safety area. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the engine mounts and lower fuselage. The instructor asserted that he should have refused to instruct in an airplane with only one control stick. Both pilots reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures 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-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained - C
  • F Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Instructor/check pilot - F

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2018_GAA18CA356.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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