Event GAA19CA111

Factual narrative

The pilot of the tail wheel equipped airplane reported that, during the landing touchdown, with flaps extended, he heard the stall warning horn. Immediately following the touchdown, a gust of wind caused the airplane to balloon up about 10 ft and drift left. The pilot applied power to go-around, however the airplane continued to drift and subsequently collided with the ground. The airplane sustained substantially damaged to the fuselage and both wings. At the time of the accident the airplane was landing runway 16 with a crosswind from 250° at 16 knots, gusting to 28 knots. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot recommended less flaps and more airspeed when landing in a crosswind. The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that, during touchdown with the flaps extended, he heard the stall warning horn. Immediately following touchdown, a wind gust caused the airplane to balloon about 10 ft and drift left. The pilot applied power to go around; however, the airplane continued to drift and subsequently impacted the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and both wings. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. At the time of the accident, the pilot was landing the airplane on runway 16 with a crosswind from 250° at 16 knots, gusting to 28 knots. The pilot recommended less flaps and more airspeed when landing in a crosswind. 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-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
• — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Crosswind-Effect on operation
• — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Effect on operation