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Atlas / NTSB / GAA19CA178

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event GAA19CA178

2019-03-23 Mecosta, Michigan, United States Airport · 0C5 None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll, which resulted in impact with a windsock pole.

Factual narrative

The pilot in the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that he had landed on the turf runway in variable wind conditions. During the landing roll, the airplane veered to the right and exited the right side of the runway. The airplane struck a lighted runway cone and a windsock pole. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The weather reporting station at the nearest airport reported that about the time of the accident, the wind was from 340° at 7 knots. The pilot landed on runway 36. The pilot in the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that he landed the airplane on the turf runway in variable wind conditions. During the landing roll, the airplane veered right and exited the right side of the runway. The airplane struck a runway cone and a windsock pole. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The weather reporting station at the nearest airport, about 24 miles from the accident site, reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 340° at 7 knots. The pilot landed the airplane on runway 36. 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-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-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-Wind sock-Effect on operation - C
  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Sign/marker-Effect on operation - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2019_GAA19CA178.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.