Event WPR13CA039

Factual narrative

The pilot was practicing touch-and-go landings with a reported 9-knot wind, clear skies, and no mention of any crosswind gusts. On the right crosswind and downwind legs, the pilot noted light turbulence. After a short approach and a smooth landing, he applied power to achieve rotation speed. However, as the airplane lifted off by only a few feet, it started getting blown left of the center line. Despite full rudder and aileron deflection correction to counter the crosswind, the airplane continued to point across a taxiway. While pointing sideways to the runway, the airplane was traveling at takeoff speed, yet not climbing at a rate that would clear parked aircraft. The pilot decided to abort the takeoff, and subsequently the airplane collided with the tail of a parked helicopter, spun a few degrees clockwise, and came to rest perched on its left wing, which sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that he had accumulated 3 hours in light sport airplanes, and felt that because of their light weight, they were more susceptible to crosswinds and turbulence than other airplanes he had flown. He also noted that the controls were configured significantly different than any of the other airplanes he had flown. His previous flights in the accident make/model were in calm air, and he felt his time in this make/model was insufficient to instill the reflexive familiarity necessary to control the airplane during takeoff with a strong crosswind. The pilot intended to practice touch-and-go landings on a runway nearly aligned with the reported 9-knot wind, in clear weather conditions. He noted no mention of any wind gusts in the airport’s automatic terminal information service weather information before he took off. However, the pilot noticed light turbulence during the right crosswind and downwind legs in the traffic pattern. After a short approach and a smooth landing, he applied power, achieved rotation speed, and lifted off again. However, when the airplane was only a few feet off the ground, the wind started to blow it left of the center line. Although the pilot applied full rudder and aileron deflection to counter the crosswind, the airplane continued to track toward the side of the runway and was not climbing at a rate that would clear parked aircraft. The pilot aborted the takeoff, and the airplane subsequently collided with the tail of a parked helicopter, spun a few degrees clockwise, and came to rest on its left wing, which sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that he had flown about 3 hours in the accident airplane, which was a light sport airplane. He believed that because of the airplane’s relatively light weight, it was more susceptible to crosswind and turbulence than other airplanes he had flown. He also noted that the controls were configured significantly different than any of the other airplanes he had flown. His previous flights took place in calm air, and the pilot thought that his time in the accident airplane was insufficient to instill the reflexive familiarity necessary to control the airplane during the accident takeoff. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Crosswind correction-Not attained/maintained - C
• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
• F Personnel issues-Experience/knowledge-Experience/qualifications-Total experience w/ equipment-Pilot - F
• C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Incorrect action performance-Pilot - C