Event GAA19CA542

Factual narrative

The solo student pilot reported that, during takeoff, the airplane drifted left off the runway. Concerned the takeoff was unsafe, he decided to abort the takeoff and landed the airplane in the gravel field adjacent to the runway. He used the brakes to slow down and attempted to maneuver the airplane back on the runway. The right main landing gear impacted a runway sign, and the airplane veered right. The airplane continued to veer right, crossed the runway, and impacted a second runway sign. The airplane came to rest in a gravel field. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage aft of the nose wheel and the right horizontal stabilizer. The student pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The airport's automated weather observation station reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was calm. The airplane was departing from runway 07. The solo student pilot reported that, during takeoff, the airplane drifted left off the runway. He was concerned that the takeoff was unsafe, so he decided to abort the takeoff and landed the airplane in a gravel field adjacent to the runway. He applied the brakes to slow down and attempted to maneuver the airplane back onto the runway. The right main landing gear impacted a runway sign, and the airplane veered right, crossed the runway, impacted a second runway sign, and then came to rest in a gravel field. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage aft of the nosewheel and the right horizontal stabilizer. The student reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. 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-Student/instructed pilot - C
• C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Sign/marker-Effect on operation - C