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GAA19CA169

2019-03-15 · Madras, Oregon, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport S33

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The student pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the aborted landing, which resulted in a collision with a snow berm and a subsequent nose-over.

Factual narrative

The student pilot reported that following his first solo flight in the pattern, during landing the airplane's nose was pointed to the left of the runway centerline during touchdown and the airplane bounced. The student further reported that the flight school has a "bounce and go" policy, so he applied full throttle and aborted the landing. The airplane continued to the left and the nose landing gear collided with a snow berm on the left side of the runway. The airplane nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The student pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The student pilot reported that, following his first solo flight in the traffic pattern, the airplane's nose was pointed left of the runway centerline during touchdown, and the airplane bounced. The student further reported that the flight school has a "bounce and go" policy, so he applied full throttle and aborted the landing. The airplane continued to the left, the nose landing gear collided with a snow berm on the left side of the runway, and the airplane nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The student reported that there were no preaccident 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-Student/instructed pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Snow/ice-Effect on operation - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2019_GAA19CA169.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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