No fatalities

26 Aug 2011: PIPER PA-44-180 — Washington Int'l Flight Academy, LLC — Gaithersburg, MD

Gaithersburg, MD, United States

On 26 Aug 2011, a PIPER PA-44-180 operated by Washington Int'l Flight Academy, LLC was involved in an aviation accident near Gaithersburg, MD. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's decision to continue taxiing with restricted windshield visibility. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

A pilot reported missing a turn to the runway due to windshield fog, exiting onto grass, sliding downhill, resulting in right main landing gear collapse and wing spar damage.

Event Summary

The pilot reported that while taxiing to the active runway for takeoff, the windshield began to fog, causing him to miss the left turn onto the runway. The airplane subsequently exited the taxiway and entered a grassy area. After turning left, the airplane slid down a hill. During the slide, the right main landing gear collapsed, and the right wing struck the ground, resulting in damage to the right wing spar.

Pilot Information

The pilot reported a total flight experience of 1,400 hours, with 96 hours in the same make and model as the accident airplane. No mechanical malfunctions were reported.

Aircraft Damage

The accident resulted in the collapse of the right main landing gear and impact damage to the right wing spar. No further damage details were provided.

Contributing factors

Causes

Directional control — Not attained/maintained

Other contributing factors

Decision related to conditionContributed to outcome