- Date
- February 1, 2023, 16:00 local (23:00 UTC)
- Place
- Limon, CO
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N5163HCessna 172S
- Defining event
- Takeoff: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20230201000719A
- Case key
- 106688
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 failure to maintain directional control during the takeoff roll.
Findings · 2
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 student pilot reported that he was performing touch-and-go landings. When he added power to take off, he lost control of the airplane as it veered left. He was unable to regain control before the airplane impacted a snowbank. The airplane flipped over and came to rest inverted on the side of the runway, which resulted in substantial damage to the wings, fuselage, and vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operations. At the time of the accident, the pilot was landing on Runway 34 with wind from 350°at 4 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5163H
- Reported as
- Cessna 172S
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 172S8933
- Built
- 2001
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- EDB Air Inc
- Registered owner
- EDB Air Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- KLIC · Limon Municipal, runway 34, 4,700 × 60 ft, asphalt
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
- 23
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 99 total · 99 in this make and model · 14.1 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 350° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 27 °F, dew point 16 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.09 inHg
- Observed at
- KLIC
- METAR
- KLIC 012255Z AUTO 35004KT 10SM CLR M03/M09 A3009 RMK AO2 SLP255 T10281089
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 7, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.7 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.