NTSB CAROL · Event
Event NYC91LA063
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
THE FAILURE OF THE STUDENT PILOT TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE AIRPLANE DURING LANDING, RESULTING IN A COLLISION WITH A SNOWBANK. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE PILOT'S LACK OF TOTAL FLIGHT EXPERIENCE AND THE UNFAVORABLE WIND DURING LANDING.
Factual narrative
THE STUDENT PILOT WAS ON A SOLO CROSS COUNTRY. DURING LANDING, HE SAID, 'I ADJUSTED FOR A SLIGHT CROSSWIND AND TOUCHED DOWN...I WAS SURPRISED AT HOW NARROW THE RUNWAY WAS, BUT THOUGHT I COULD HANDLE IT. AT THE LAST MOMENT I ENCOUNTERED A GUST AND I SWERVED TO THE LEFT CAUSING MY LEFT LANDING GEAR TO CONTACT HARD FROZEN SNOW...I MUST HAVE OVERCORRECTED BECAUSE I SOON SWERVED...RIGHT INTO HARD SNOW.' THE AIRPLANE NOSED OVER THE STUDENT HAD A TOTAL OF 37 FLIGHT HOURS. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1991_NYC91LA063.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
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