- Date
- February 19, 2000, 14:45 local (20:45 UTC)
- Place
- Weir, TX
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N76190Cessna 140
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 2, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000219010749A
- Case key
- 48648
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 delayed aborted takeoff by the pilot. Factors were the pilot's intentional ground loop/swerve and the tail wind.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot attempted to takeoff from his private 1,600-foot grass airstrip (runway 18) with a 'strong' tailwind. The pilot stated that the winds were from 360 degrees at 10 knots, gusting to 15 knots, and were stronger than he anticipated. He aborted the takeoff prior to the airplane becoming airborne at approximately the midpoint of the runway. During the aborted takeoff, the pilot initiated a right turn to avoid a fence at the departure end of the runway. The airplane skidded left, the left main gear collapsed, and the airplane departed the right side of the runway coming to rest upright in a grass field.
Factual narrative
On February 19, 2000, at 1445 central standard time, a Cessna 140 tailwheel-equipped airplane, N76190, struck the terrain during an aborted takeoff from a private airstrip near Weir, Texas. The aircraft was owned and operated by the private pilot under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The pilot received minor injuries, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local flight, and a flight plan was not filed. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.
On the NTSB Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2), the 889-hour pilot reported that he attempted to takeoff from his private 1,600-foot grass airstrip (runway 18) with a "strong" tailwind. The pilot stated that the winds were from 360 degrees at 10 knots, gusting to 15 knots, and were stronger than he anticipated. The pilot aborted the takeoff prior to the airplane becoming airborne at approximately the midpoint of the runway. During the aborted takeoff, the pilot initiated a right turn to avoid a fence at the departure end of the runway. The airplane skidded left, the left main gear collapsed, and the airplane departed the right side of the runway coming to rest upright in a grass field.
The pilot had accumulated 824 hours in the same make and model airplane, and had operated from the same airstrip for 10 years.
According to a FAA inspector, who responded to the accident site, the left main landing gear collapsed, and the left wing folded upward.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N76190
- Reported as
- Cessna 140
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 10587
- Airframe hours
- 3,420
- Engine
- Continental C-85-12, 85 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Robert L. Hoopes
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 30, 1999 · 61 hours before
- Departed
- NONE
- Airport
- NONE · Hoopes Private Airstrip, runway 18, 1,600 × 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
- 66
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 889 total · 824 in this make and model · 856 as pilot in command · 6 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 63 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N76190 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.