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Atlas / NTSB / WPR23LA011

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event WPR23LA011

2022-10-08 Monument Valley, Utah, United States Airport · UT25 None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N1961C

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

CESSNA 170B

Year of manufacture

1953 · 69 years old at event

Engine

CONT MOTOR C145 SERIES (145 hp)

Seats / Engines

4 seats · 1 engine

Last airworthiness date

19560329

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S A180F3

Registrant of record

AEROSLAT4 LLC

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s loss of airplane control during the landing flare in gusting wind and subsequent loss of directional control during the landing roll.

Factual narrative

The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that, during the flare for landing, the airplane encountered a wind gust and the airplane landed hard and bounced. The airplane veered to the left and subsequently ground looped off the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the lower fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions 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).

  • Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
  • Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained
  • Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained
  • Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Effect on operation

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2022_WPR23LA011.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.