The pilot’s failure to reconnoiter the approach area in preparation for an off-airport landing on a sandbar, which necessitated an evasive maneuver to avoid wires and resulted in an unintentional landing in the river short of the sandbar and a subsequent nose-over.
NTSB
Fast turn onto taxiway goes awry for Mooney pilot
The pilot’s improper decision to turn the airplane from the runway onto the taxiway at an excessive speed, which resulted in a loss of directional control, runway excursion, and collision with a taxiway sign.
C172 hits pond when nosewheel fails on takeoff
The failure of the nosewheel steerage linkage during takeoff, which resulted in a loss of directional control and impact with an obstacle during an attempted aborted landing.
Pilot crashes while performing aerial stunts for children’s party
The pilot’s failure to see and avoid trees while maneuvering at low altitude, which resulted in a loss of airplane control.
Fuel starvation proves fatal for pilot
The pilot’s fuel mismanagement during flight, resulting in a total loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.
Birds interrupt landing
The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during an attempted go-around to avoid birds, which resulted in a runway excursion and subsequent nose-over.
Questions From the Cockpit: Who needs to be enlightened?
There are a lot of stumbling blocks in the way of accurately turning on Pilot Controlled Lighting, so it may be time for a refresher on lighting up the night.
Fuel exhaustion leads to forced landing on a golf course
The pilot’s inadequate preflight fuel planning and inflight fuel management, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a total loss of engine power.
Malfunctioning tailwheel leads to loss of control on landing
The malfunction of the steerable tailwheel, which resulted in a loss of directional control during the landing roll and subsequent impact with the precision approach path indicator lights system.