Event GAA18CA486

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that, while flying over the grass runway, it appeared "rough but serviceable". During landing, he found the surface was extremely rough with tall weeds. During departure, acceleration was "less than normal" due to the vegetation. When the airplane reached the pilot's planned abort point, the pilot realized that he had misjudged the abort point for the runway. He initially thought his selected abort point was about 800 to 1,000 ft before the end of the runway, but, was about 100 to 200 ft before the end of the runway. The airplane overran the runway, crossed a road, and struck a barbed wire fence. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and left wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The Federal Aviation Administration Airport Facility Directory for the accident airport, in part stated: "[Runways] not recommended for [takeoff or landing]." The pilot reported that, while flying over the grass runway, it appeared "rough but serviceable." During landing, he found the surface was extremely rough with tall weeds. During the subsequent departure, acceleration was "less than normal" due to the vegetation. When the airplane reached the pilot's planned abort point for the runway, he realized that he had misjudged the abort point. He initially thought his selected abort point was about 800 to 1,000 ft before the end of the runway, but it was about 100 to 200 ft before the end of the runway. The airplane overran the runway, crossed a road, and struck a barbed wire fence. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and left wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The Federal Aviation Administration Airport Facility Directory for the accident airport, in part, stated: "[Runways] not recommended for [takeoff or landing]." 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-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Pilot - C
• C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Terrain-Rough terrain-Decision related to condition - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Planning/preparation-(general)-Pilot - C
• C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Identification/recognition-Pilot - C