Incident Summary
A pilot reported that during a landing approach, her aircraft was pushed off its intended path by a gusting crosswind and subsequently struck trees to the left of the runway.
Pilot Actions
The pilot reported that she first circled the field to determine prevailing winds and select a landing runway. After observing the windsocks, she estimated the wind from 060 degrees at 8 knots, favoring Runway 06. She established the aircraft on final approach, planning to land long. On final, she extended full flaps and stabilized the airspeed at 60 knots.
Sequence of Events
As the aircraft descended to about 40 feet above ground level just past the approach end, a gusting right crosswind caused the aircraft to be pushed off its approach path. The pilot attempted to correct her direction of flight and applied full power. However, due to her reduced airspeed and full flaps configuration, she reported being unable to establish a positive rate of climb in time to avoid trees about 30 to 40 feet tall located about 30 yards off the left side of the runway. The left wing of the aircraft struck a tree, causing the aircraft to yaw and fall through the trees to the ground.