# NTSB LAX07CA286: Cessna 182F, N3580Y, Bakersfield, CA, October 1, 2007 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: September 30, 2007, 18:25 local (Oct 1, 2007, 01:25 UTC) - Place: Bakersfield, CA - Coordinates: 35.433612, -119.056663 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.4336&lon=-119.0567&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Standing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/150) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 4 uninjured - Status: Completed, report October 31, 2007 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 66798 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX07CA286 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/66798/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX07CA286 ## Probable cause The pilot's inadequate preflight inspection and pretakeoff checks during which he failed to remove the gust lock. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Miscellaneous/other, standing - pre-flight - flight control,gust lock - not removed (cause) - aircraft preflight - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - Hard landing, takeoff - aborted - flight control surfaces/attachments - movement restricted - aborted takeoff - performed, pilot in command - porpoise/pilot-induced oscillation - encountered, pilot in command ## Analysis The airplane porpoised on the runway while decelerating during a rejected takeoff. The pilot did not have the Cessna issued gust lock that fits into the hole in the control yoke. Therefore, he placed a machine bolt into the hole to keep the flight controls steady while he washed his airplane. During the pilot's subsequent preflight and pretakeoff check he failed to observe that movement of the flight controls was restricted. During takeoff, as the airplane became airborne, the bolt's presence was discovered, and the pilot retarded the throttle. The airplane contacted the runway in a nose low attitude and porpoised, thereby bending the firewall and fuselage. ## Factual narrative On September 30, 2007, about 1825 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 182F, N3580Y, porpoised during a rejected takeoff from the Meadows Field, Bakersfield, California. The pilot owned and operated the airplane. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the personal flight, and no flight plan had been filed. The airplane was substantially damaged. Neither the private pilot nor the three passengers were injured. The flight was performed under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91, and it was originating at the time of the accident. The pilot reported to the National Transportation Safety Board investigator that he did not have the Cessna issued gust lock that fits into the hole in the control yoke. Therefore, he placed a machine bolt into the hole to keep the flight controls steady while he washed his airplane. The pilot boarded his family and friends, and then proceeded to taxi for takeoff. The pilot stated that he abbreviated his pretakeoff check, and he did not verify that the flight controls moved freely and in an unrestricted manner. Upon accelerating to about takeoff speed the pilot observed that the machine bolt was in the yoke hole, and about this time the airplane became airborne. The pilot stated that he attempted to remove the bolt, and being unsuccessful, he retarded the throttle to idle. According to the pilot the airplane climbed to a maximum altitude between 2 and 5 feet above the runway's surface, at which time it descended until contacting the runway in a nose low attitude. After several bounces the nose gear strut collapsed. By the time the airplane came to a stop the firewall and floor board had buckled. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N3580Y](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3580Y-2008-02-20), registration cancelled 2008-02-20, S/N 18254480, built 1962 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 182F - Registry model: [Cessna 182F](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-182f) (registry code 2072714) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental O-470 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-o-470-series) (registry code 17026, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18254480 - Engines: Continental O-470R reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Troy D. Morris - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: BFL, Bakersfield, CA - Destination: DLO, Delano, CA - Airport: BFL, Meadown Field, runway 30L, 3,700 × 75 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 46; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3; flight hours: 127 total, 54 in this make and model, 28 in the last 90 days, 20 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Observed at: KBFL ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20070930021249A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20070930021249A), Sep 30, 2007: Cessna 182F, Bakersfield, CA, Substantial damage. (-23) The pilot and three passengers were taking a local flight under VFR conditions. The pilot washed the aircraft prior to departure and placed a machine… 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.