# NTSB CEN19LA108: Cessna A185, N2744Q, Lafayette, LA, March 23, 2019 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Class 3 · Limited · Final report - Date: March 23, 2019, 16:06 local (21:06 UTC) - Place: Lafayette, LA - Coordinates: 30.24047, -91.989685 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.2405&lon=-91.9897&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Taxi](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/250) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Taxi-from runway: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed - Report: Approved by Office Director - Investigation class: Class 3 - NTSB office: Central Region - NTSB case key (mKey): 99183 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN19LA108 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/99183/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=99183 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN19LA108 ## Probable cause The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Use of equip/info: aircraft control](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040): Personnel issues › Task performance · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [All aircraft, 9,295 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040/cases.md) - [Performance/control parameters: directional control](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020): Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintained; cases with it: [All aircraft, 3,958 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Taxi-from runway: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) (defining event); cases with it: [All aircraft, 4,585 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot, who was the owner of the airplane, stated that the flight was uneventful and that the touchdown and rollout was "smooth" until he began to turn the airplane off the runway onto the taxiway. At that time, the right brake "grabbed very hard" and the airplane ground looped, resulting in substantial damage to the left aileron and left wing structure. Postaccident examination of the brakes revealed no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The circumstances of the accident are consistent with the pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll. ## Factual narrative On March 23, 2019, about 1730 central daylight time, a Cessna 185 airplane, N2744Q, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Lafayette, Louisiana. The pilot and pilot-rated passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot, who was the owner of the airplane, reported that the flight was uneventful and that the touchdown and rollout was "smooth" until he began to turn the airplane off the runway onto the taxiway. At that time, the right brake "grabbed very hard" and the airplane ground looped, resulting in substantial damage to the left aileron and left wing structure. Postaccident examination of the brakes revealed no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. ## Aircraft - Registration: N2744Q (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: Cessna A185 (F) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18503528 - Year built: 1978 - Airframe hours: 3353.7 - Engines: Continental IO-520-D-90B 300 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, October 18, 2018, 0.4 hours before - Departed: BTR, Baton Rouge, LA - Destination: LFT, Lafayette, LA - Airport: LFT, Lafayette Rgnl/Paul Fournet Field, runway 22L, 8,000 × 150 ft, asphalt - Equipment: Auto-pilot, ADS-B ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 72; commercial; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, with waivers/limitations; last flight review November 17, 2018; seat: right; restraint: 3-point; flight hours: 8,962 total, 250 in this make and model, 8,600 as pilot in command, 50 in the last 90 days, 15 in the last 30 days - Co-pilot; seat: left; restraint: 3-point ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: variable at 4 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 6,000 ft broken - Temperature: 88 °F, dew point 72 °F - Altimeter: 30.07 inHg - Observed at: LFT ## Docket (4 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 9, 2021, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=99183. 7.4 MB in all. - Pilot/operator aircraft accident report, NTSB form 6120.1 (item 1, PDF, 11 pages, 411 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=12178963&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=CEN19LA108%20Completed%206120%20w%20blocks%20for%20docket_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Pilot and passenger statements (item 2, PDF, 2 pages, 5.3 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=12179137&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Pilot%20and%20passenger%20statements_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Memorandum of record for FAA exam (item 3, PDF, 1 page, 128 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=12264611&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Memorandum%20of%20Record%20for%20FAA%20Exam-Rel.pdf - Photographs of damages to airplane (item 4, PDF, 2 pages, 1.6 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=12265495&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Photos%20for%20docket-Rel.pdf From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.