NTSB NYC90LA012 — 1989-10-14 · NIAGARA FALLS, New York, United States

Current FAA registration · N7930V

Make / Model: CESSNA 180H
Year of manufacture: 1967 · 22 years old at event
Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 hp)
Seats / Engines: 6 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 19670505
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S AAC596

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N7930V Cessna 180H None

Probable cause & findings

THE PILOT'S LOSS OF DIRECTIONAL CONTROL DURING TAKEOFF ROLL DUE TO STRONG WIND GUSTS.

Factual narrative

AT THE RUN-UP AREA, THE PILOT HAD DELAYED HIS TAKEOFF UNTIL THE WIND SUBSIDED CHECKING WITH GROUND CONTROL EVERY FEW MINUTES FOR WIND DIRECTION & VELOCITY. WHEN THE WIND HAD SUBSIDED HE INITIATED THE TAKEOFF. HE WAS GIVEN THE WIND AS 350 AT 16 KTS BY THE TOWER. DURING THE TAKEOFF GROUND RUN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL BECAME IMPOSSIBLE TO MAINTAIN AND THE AIRPLANE RAN OFF THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RWY INTO SOFT TURF COLLAPSING THE LEFT MAIN GEAR. THE CONTROL TOWER REPORTED THAT A STRONG WIND GUST OCCURRED PRIOR TO ROTATION. THE 1647 WINDS WERE REPORTED AS 010 AT 25 KTS, GUSTING 33 KTS. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1989_NYC90LA012.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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