NTSB CAROL · Event
Event LAX90LA221
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO RETRACT THE LANDING GEAR RESULTING IN AN INADVERTENT WHEELS-DOWN LANDING IN WATER. IN ADDITION, A LOSS OF ELEVATOR CONTROL WAS ENCOUNTERED DUE TO A STRESS CORROSION FAILURE OF AN ELEVATOR CONTROL CABLE TURNBUCKLE AS A RESULT OF INADEQUATE MAINTENANCE AND INSPECTION. FACTORS WHICH CONTRIBUTED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: A PREVIOUS HARD LANDING AS A RESULT OF AN IMPROPER LEVEL-OFF, AND THE PILOT'S LACK OF RECENT EXPERIENCE IN THE MAKE AND MODEL AIRPLANE.
Factual narrative
DURING THE 18-MONTH PERIOD PRIOR TO THIS FLIGHT THE ACFT HAD BEEN REBUILT. THIS WAS THE FIRST FLIGHT TO LEAK-CHECK THE HULL BEFORE PAINTING. SEVERAL WATER LANDINGS WERE MADE; THE LAST BEING REFERRED TO BY A WITNESS 'IT HIT THE WATER'. THE PILOT STATED THAT WHILE RETURNING TO LONG BEACH ALL ELEVATOR CONTROL WAS LOST. HE ELECTED TO LAND BACK IN THE WATER, AND FORGOT THE WHEELS WERE DOWN. THE LANDING WAS MADE USING POWER AND ELEV TRIM, AND THE ACFT NOSED OVER NEAR THE SHORELINE. INVESTIGATION REVEALED A DISCOLORED & CORRODED ELEV CONTROL CABLE TURNBUCKLE THAT HAD FAILED DUE TO STRESS CORROSION CRACKING, WITH THE FINAL FAILURE MODE OF TENSILE OVERLOAD. THE PILOT STATED THAT HE HAD NOT MADE A WATER LANDING IN OVER ONE YEAR. ABOUT 2-1/2 HRS AFTER THE OCCURRENCE THE PILOT'S BLOOD ALCOHOL LEVEL WAS 0.022%. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1990_LAX90LA221.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
Beyond the agency record
Search this event elsewhere.
Pre-filled searches into the sources where news + community discussion of aviation events lives. External sources are reported, not agency. Treat them as signal that something happened, not as fact about what happened.
Entity-clustered aviation events in the press — last 24 hr + 30-day archive.
Official agency record + docket.
Investigative docket: factual reports, photos, transcripts.
Long-running aviation incident database (Flight Safety Foundation).
Community NTSB synthesis blog — often has photos and witness reports.
Gold-standard aviation incident blog.
Aviation industry news search.
GA pilot forum — informed but rumor-prone.
GA pilot subreddit search.
Tail-number page — flight history (free tier limited).
AOPA Air Safety Institute search.
Mainstream press coverage. Recent events only.
Privacy-preserving news search.
External links open in a new tab. We don't ingest their content; we deep-link search queries.
Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (maintenance). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2026 · Journal article (IJAAA)
From Reactive to Predictive: A hybrid Trust-Mediated Adoption Framework for Data-Driven Maintenance in Distributed-Authority Aviation Environments
Modern aviation maintenance operates within increasingly data-intensive technological environments, yet the operational integration of predictive maintenance into routine decision-making remains incon…
- Semantic Scholar 2025 · Article (Applied Sciences)
Decision-Making Framework for Aviation Safety in Predictive Maintenance Strategies
The implementation of predictive maintenance (PM) in aviation presents unique challenges due to strict safety requirements, complex operational environments, and regulatory constraints.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2024 · Journal article (JAAER)
Low-Resource Automatic Speech Recognition Domain Adaptation – A Case-Study in Aviation Maintenance
With timeliness and efficiency being critical in the aviation maintenance industry, the need has been growing for smart technological solutions that optimize and streamline the different underlying ta…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2024 · Journal article (JAAER)
A New Trajectory in UAV Safety: Leveraging Reinforcement Learning for Distance Maintenance Under Wind Variations
In the field of aviation, safety is a critical cornerstone, and the operation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) systems is deeply connected with this principle.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2024 · Journal article (IJAAA)
Just Culture in Aviation: A Metaphorical Study on Aircraft Maintenance Students
Just Culture, a sub-dimension of safety culture, has been a prominent and debated topic in aviation safety in recent years.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2024 · Journal article (IJAAA)
Performance PRISM: A Comprehensive Framework For Performance Measurement In Aircraft Maintenance
Aircraft maintenance is governed by rigorous safety requirements and high operational complexity, demanding robust performance measurement frameworks to ensure optimal maintenance practices.
Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗