- Date
- May 13, 2026, 09:55 local (14:55 UTC)
- Place
- West Chicago, IL
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N31401Piper PA-28R-201
- Defining event
- Takeoff-rejected takeoff: Runway excursion
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 17, 2026
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration; Chicago FSDO
- FAA report
- 20260513006609A
- Case key
- 202982
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 attempt an intersection takeoff and delay to abort the takeoff which resulted in a subsequent runway excursion.
Findings · 3
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 pilot stated that he estimated a takeoff distance of 1,200 ft based on his gross weight and weather conditions. The airplane preflight, engine start, and engine run-up were normal for the personal flight, and he performed an intersection takeoff, which provided about 2,500 ft of useable runway length from a total runway length of 3,399 ft. The pilot began the takeoff roll from a full stop with full engine power and used a short field takeoff wing flap setting of 25o. The pilot stated that the engine was operating at full power, and the engine instruments indicated no problems. About 1,300 ft from the end of the runway, the pilot decided to abort the takeoff because the airplane did not attain his target rotation speed. The pilot reduced engine power to idle and applied brakes, but as the airplane neared the end of the runway, he applied maximum braking and moved the control yoke full aft to increase the airplane weight on the main landing gear wheels. The left main landing gear wheel then locked up, and the airplane veered off the runway and impacted a runway end identifier light resulting in substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot stated that the accident could have been prevented if he had used the entire runway length for the takeoff, which would have provided enough distance to safely stop the airplane. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N31401
- Reported as
- Piper PA-28R-201
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28R-7837234
- Built
- 1978
- Airframe hours
- 5,968.1
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-C1C6, 200 hp, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 14, 2025
- Destination
- JVL · Janesville, WI
- Airport
- DPA · DuPage Airport, runway 33, 3,399 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Stall warning system, ADS-B, Auto-pilot, Electronic primary flight display
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
- 57
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 833 total · 173 in this make and model · 759 as pilot in command · 9 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 11 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.97 inHg
- Observed at
- DPA
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 17, 2026, 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.