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SEA06CA098

2006-04-30 · Billings, Montana, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport BIL

Current FAA registration · N739AJ

Make / Model
CESSNA 172N
Year of manufacture
1978 · 28 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19780216
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A9EC83

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a sign while taxiing to parking.

Factual narrative

On April 30, 2006, about 1600 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N739AJ, collided with a sign while taxiing to parking at the Billings Logan International Airport, Billings, Montana. The airplane, which was registered to and operated by the pilot, sustained substantial damage. The private pilot and his passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal cross country flight. The flight originated in Lewiston, Idaho, about 1310, and the intended destination was Billings. According to the pilot, as he was looking to his right to taxi into a parking place on the ramp, the airplane's left wing struck a sign pole. His passenger tried to warn him about the sign, and he applied the brakes, but was unable to stop before contacting the sign. An FAA inspector examined the airplane and reported that the left wing sustained structural damage. According to the pilot, as he was looking to his right to taxi into a parking place on the ramp, the airplane's left wing struck a sign pole. His passenger tried to warn him about the sign, and he applied the brakes, but was unable to stop before contacting the sign. An FAA inspector examined the airplane and reported that the left wing sustained structural damage. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2006_SEA06CA098.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.