- Date
- September 7, 2009, 20:00 local (Sep 8, 2009, 03:00 UTC)
- Place
- Long Beach, CA
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Aircraft
- N51594Cessna 172P
- Defining event
- Taxi-to runway: Ground collision
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Status
- Completed · report December 29, 2009
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Adminstration
- FAA report
- 20090907016929A
- Case key
- 74736
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 clearance from a parked vehicle during taxi.
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
While taxing at night from a parking area to runway 30 for takeoff, the commercial pilot inadvertently departed the taxiway and entered onto a service road. While trying to re-enter the taxiway from the service road the left wing tip struck a parked van. The airplane then pivoted around and struck a storage container. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions prior to the accident.
Factual narrative
While taxing at night from a parking area to runway 30 for takeoff, the commercial pilot inadvertently departed the taxiway and entered onto a service road. While trying to re-enter the taxiway from the service road the left wing tip struck a parked van. The airplane then pivoted around and struck a storage container. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions prior to the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N51594
- Reported as
- Cessna 172P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17274326
- Airframe hours
- 12,731
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320 SERIES, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Candace A. Lamed Enterprise, Inc., doing business as Long Beach Flying Club
- Registered owner
- Harford Paul
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · August 10, 2009 · 46 hours before
- Departed
- LGB · Long Beach, CA
- Destination
- LGB · Long Beach, CA
- Airport
- LGB · Long Beach Airport
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
- 30
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 17, 2008
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,557 total · 0 in this make and model · 1,426 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.79 inHg
- Observed at
- LGB
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 16, 2009, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 328 KB 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.