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GAA19CA152

2019-02-25 · Ridgeland, South Carolina, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 3J1

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll, which resulted in a runway excursion and impact with a ditch.

Factual narrative

The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that, during the landing roll, as the tailwheel touched down, the airplane veered to the right. The pilot attempted to correct with rudder to no avail. The airplane veered off the runway to the right and impacted a ditch. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing, right aileron, and the right elevator. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that the wind was calm. The pilot landed the airplane on runway 21. The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that, during the landing roll, as the tailwheel touched down, the airplane veered right. The pilot attempted to correct with rudder to no avail. The airplane veered off the runway to the right and impacted a ditch. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing, right aileron, and right elevator. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that the wind was calm. The pilot landed the airplane on runway 21. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, 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-Physical environment-Terrain-Sloped/uneven terrain-Contributed to outcome

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2019_GAA19CA152.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (runway excursion). All research papers