- Date
- September 28, 2014, 08:30 local (13:30 UTC)
- Place
- Port Eads, LA
- Injuries
- 3 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N2011RCessna 182G
- Defining event
- Takeoff: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 13, 2014
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- FAA report
- 20140928020059A
- Case key
- 90182
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's improper decision to depart from a runway not suitable for takeoff, which resulted in a loss of aircraft control.
Findings · 4
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The private pilot stated that his private grass runway was wet but he decided to take-off anyway. During the takeoff roll, the left wheel struck a puddle just as he was lifting the airplane off the ground. This caused the right side of the airplane to become airborne before the left side. The pilot said he was able to level the airplane at a height of 30 feet above ground level (agl), but the airplane would not climb. He held the airplane in a nose high attitude as it began to strike sugar cane adjacent to the runway. The airplane descended and the tail section struck the ground first. When the nose wheel hit the ground, it sunk in the mud and the airplane flipped over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the tail section, right wing strut, and firewall. The pilot stated there were no mechanical deficiencies with the airplane prior to the accident. He also said that he should have checked the runway's condition before departing and waited for conditions to improve.
Factual narrative
The private pilot stated that his private grass runway was wet but he decided to take-off anyway. During the takeoff roll, the left wheel struck a puddle just as he was lifting the airplane off the ground. This caused the right side of the airplane to become airborne before the left side. The pilot said he was able to level the airplane at a height of 30 feet above ground level (agl), but the airplane would not climb. He held the airplane in a nose high attitude as it began to strike sugar cane adjacent to the runway. The airplane descended and the tail section struck the ground first. When the nose wheel hit the ground, it sunk in the mud and the airplane flipped over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the tail section, right wing strut, and firewall. The pilot stated there were no mechanical deficiencies with the airplane prior to the accident. He also said that he should have checked the runway's condition before departing and waited for conditions to improve.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2011R
- Reported as
- Cessna 182G (G)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18255211
- Built
- 1964
- Airframe hours
- 5,300
- Engine
- Cont Motor O-470 SERIES, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 25, 2014 · 8 hours before
- Departed
- Port Eads, LA
- Destination
- PQL · Pascagoula, MS
- Airport
- None · None, runway None, 2,100 × 60 ft, grass/turf
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 8
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Unknown
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 75 total · 35 in this make and model · 75 as pilot in command · 56 in the last 90 days · 11 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 29, 2014, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.8 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.