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Atlas / NTSB / WPR15CA012

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event WPR15CA012

2014-10-02 Marion, Montana, United States Airport · 97MT None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N156JM

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

CESSNA 180

Year of manufacture

1956 · 58 years old at event

Engine

CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 hp)

Seats / Engines

4 seats · 1 engine

Last airworthiness date

19560222

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S A0E14D

Registrant of record

TRECHAK ASHLEY L

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during landing.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that during landing in the tailwheel equipped airplane, he inadvertently applied left brake and the airplane veered abruptly to the left. Subsequently, the right wing and horizontal stabilizer struck the ground and the airplane came to rest upright. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed structural damage to the right wing, right horizontal, and right elevator. The pilot reported no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported that during landing in the tailwheel equipped airplane, he inadvertently applied left brake and the airplane veered abruptly to the left. Subsequently, the right wing and horizontal stabilizer struck the ground and the airplane came to rest upright. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed structural damage to the right wing, right horizontal, and right elevator. The pilot reported no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. 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-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
  • Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Surface speed/braking-Incorrect use/operation

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2014_WPR15CA012.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Related research

What the literature says.

Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type. Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.

Browse the full corpus — academia portal ↗