NTSB WPR23LA155 — 2023-04-14 · North Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Current FAA registration · N734NJ

Make / Model: CESSNA 172N
Year of manufacture: 1977 · 46 years old at event
Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 hp)
Seats / Engines: 4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 19770412
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S A9DB1C

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N734NJ Cessna 172N None

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during the landing roll resulting in collision with taxiway sign.

Factual narrative

The Certified Flight Instructor reported that, while practicing stop-and-go landings with his student, the airplane touched down hard and immediately veered left. The pilot attempted to correct with opposite rudder; however, the airplane continued off the runway and hit a taxiway sign with the left wing and landing gear struts. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left-wing strut. The pilot reported to the duty officer that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

— Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Student/instructed pilot
— Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Sign/marker-Contributed to outcome
— Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2023_WPR23LA155.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 (icing). All research papers