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WPR13CA412

2013-09-16 · Bozeman, Montana, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport KBZN

Current FAA registration · N4988M

Make / Model
PIPER PA-11
Year of manufacture
1948 · 65 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR C90 SERIES (95 hp)
Seats / Engines
2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19680611
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A6314C

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control and inadequate compensation for the high gusty wind conditions during taxi.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that after aborting the takeoff due to an approaching thunderstorm and high winds, while taxiing back to the parking area, a strong wind lifted the airplane. The airplane subsequently nosed over which resulted in substantial damage to the wings, fuselage, vertical stabilizer, and rudder. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that after aborting the takeoff due to an approaching thunderstorm and high wind, while taxiing back to the parking area, a strong wind lifted the airplane. The airplane subsequently nosed over which resulted in substantial damage to the wings, fuselage, vertical stabilizer, and rudder. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane 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 Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-(general)-Not attained/maintained - C
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-High wind-Not specified

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2013_WPR13CA412.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (thunderstorm). All research papers