# NTSB LAX96LA307: Cessna A185F, N2431Y, Casa Grande, AZ, August 4, 1996 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 4, 1996, 06:30 local (13:30 UTC) - Place: Casa Grande, AZ - Location: 32.9549° N, 111.7668° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at CASA GRANDE MUNI (CGZ), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.9549&lon=-111.7668&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report May 30, 1997 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 29537 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX96LA307 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/29537/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX96LA307 ## Probable cause the student pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane, which resulted in an inadvertent ground loop. Factors relating to the accident were: the student pilot's inadequate training and lack of certification (endorsement). ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - directional control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - ground loop/swerve - inadvertent, pilot in command (cause) - inadequate training, pilot in command (contributing factor) - lack of certification, pilot in command (contributing factor) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - roll ## Analysis The student pilot lost directional control and inadvertently ground looped the airplane after practicing touch-and-go landings and takeoffs. The student received dual instruction in the airplane about 2 months before the accident, but he did not receive the appropriate endorsement to solo the accident airplane. Postaccident examination disclosed no evidence of any preexisting malfunction or failure. The student pilot reported that the surface winds were slightly breezy. ## Factual narrative On August 4, 1996, at 0630 hours mountain standard time, a Cessna A185F, N2431Y, lost directional control during the landing rollout on runway 05 at Casa Grande Airport, Casa Grande, Arizona. The pilot was completing a visual flight rules personal flight. The airplane, operated by Southwest Industrial Rigging, Casa Grande, sustained substantial damage. The noncertificated student pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight originated at the University of Arizona airstrip, Maricopa, Arizona, at 0620. This accident was initially reported as an incident. During the repair, maintenance personnel found major structural damage. The pilot told an Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector from the Scottsdale, Arizona, Flight Standards District Office that he initially departed Chandler, Arizona, airport about 0545 hours, and flew to the University of Arizona airstrip and executed six touch-and-go landings and takeoffs. He then flew to Casa Grande Airport. He said that he inadvertently "ground looped" the airplane on the landing roll and that the surface winds were "slightly breezy." The FAA inspector reported that the student pilot did not have the appropriate solo endorsement for the accident airplane. The inspector stated, however, that conversations with the student pilot's previous instructors confirmed that he received some dual instruction in the accident airplane about 2 months prior to the accident. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N2431Y](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N2431Y), registered now, S/N 18503566 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna A185F - Registry model: [Cessna A185F](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-a185f) (registry code 2072821) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental IO-520 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-520-series) (registry code 17032, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18503566 - Engines: Continental IO-520 280 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Southwest Industrial Rigging - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: 3AZ2 - Destination: CZG - Airport: CGZ, Casa Grande Municipal, runway 5, 5,200 × 100 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 44; student; medical: class 3, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; seat: left; flight hours: 250 total, 40 in this make and model ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 350° at 5 knots - Visibility: 50 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 84 °F ## 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 19960804022719A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19960804022719A), Aug 4, 1996: Cessna A185F, Casa Grande, AZ, Substantial damage. Lost directional control on rollout. Ground looped. No solo endorse for this aircraft. 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.