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WPR12CA127

2012-03-08 · Kelso, Washington, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport KKLS

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot did not maintain directional control during the landing flare.

Factual narrative

The pilot was landing the airplane on runway 12. The automated weather observing system (AWOS) recorded that the wind was from 170 degrees at 6 knots. While in the landing flare the pilot stated that the wind pushed the tail of the airplane to the left; he corrected with left rudder and power to align the airplane with the runway. The airplane continued to veer to the right, went off the right side of the runway, and nosed over in the soft ground. Damage included wrinkled wing skin, and buckled left lift strut. The pilot was landing the airplane on runway 12. The automated weather observing system recorded that the wind was from 170 degrees at 6 knots. The pilot stated that, while in the landing flare, the wind pushed the tail of the airplane to the left; he corrected with left rudder and power to align the airplane with the runway. The airplane continued to veer to the right, went off the right side of the runway, and nosed over in the soft ground. Damage included wrinkled wing skin and a buckled left lift strut. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Crosswind-Response/compensation
  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2012_WPR12CA127.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.