Primary finding
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control during the landing and the subsequent aborted landing.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The pilot aborted the landing after the airplane veered off the runway and was headed toward airport lighting equipment. However, the airplane stalled during the initial climb and impacted a bean field. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunction or failure with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Source record
Factual narrative
On August 11, 2012, at 1150 central daylight time, a Cessna 177RG, N1564H, impacted terrain during initial climb from an aborted landing on runway 36 at Litchfield Municipal Airport (3LF), Litchfield, Illinois. The private pilot received minor injuries. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a flight plan had not been filed for the flight that departed from St. Louis Regional Airport, Alton, Illinois, about 1130 and was en route to 3LF. The pilot stated that during landing, the airplane veered to the left and headed toward airport lighting equipment. The pilot performed an aborted landing, and during the initial climb, the airplane stalled and impacted trees. The airplane then landed on a bean field. The pilot reported that there was no mechanical malfunction/failure with the airplane at the time of the accident. The pilot's recommendation of how the accident could have been prevented was, "Better control upon landing [and] recognition of crosswind conditions."