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WPR13CA261

2013-06-01 · La Grande, Oregon, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport LGD

Current FAA registration · N650VX

Make / Model
BEECH A23-24
Year of manufacture
1967 · 46 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20050406
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A88EAB

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to maintain airplane control and the flight instructors failure to monitor the pilot during a simulated emergency landing.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that while flying with a certified flight instructor (CFI) for his biannual review, they were simulating an engine failure over the airport with the intent to land on the runway. After spiraling to traffic pattern altitude, the pilot entered a downwind leg for the runway. The pilot turned towards the runway and inadvertently stalled the airplane about 200 feet above the ground. The CFI took over the flight controls; the airplane struck the ground hard, broke off the right main landing gear, and bounced back into the air. The CFI climbed to a safe altitude and circled above the airport before conducting an uneventful landing onto the grass next to the runway. During the accident sequence, the right wing sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that while flying with a certified flight instructor (CFI) for his biannual review, they were simulating an engine failure over the airport with the intent to land on the runway. After spiraling to traffic pattern altitude, the pilot entered a downwind leg for the runway. The pilot turned towards the runway and inadvertently stalled the airplane about 200 feet above the ground. The CFI took over the flight controls; the airplane struck the ground hard, broke off the right main landing gear, and bounced back into the air. The CFI climbed to a safe altitude and circled above the airport before conducting an uneventful landing onto the grass next to the runway. During the accident sequence, the right wing sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring other person-Instructor/check pilot - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2013_WPR13CA261.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

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Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall, engine failure). All research papers