Primary finding
Probable cause
The student pilot's failure to maintain directional control and the flight instructor's delayed remedial action during landing. Contributing was the snow on the runway surface.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The airplane veered off the runway during landing while on an instructional flight with a student pilot and a flight instructor. During the landing, the airplane's left main landing gear wheel contacted snow on the runway, which resulted in the airplane veering into a snowbank along the runway edge and impacting the ground with the right wing. The airplane sustained substantial damage when the right wing contacted the ground. The flight instructor reported that there was no mechanical malfunction/failure with the airplane that would have precluded normal airplane operation.
Source record
Factual narrative
The airplane veered off the runway during landing while on an instructional flight with a student pilot and a flight instructor. During the landing, the airplane's left main landing gear wheel contacted snow on the runway, which resulted in the airplane veering into a snowbank along the runway edge and impacting the ground with the right wing. The airplane sustained substantial damage when the right wing contacted the ground. The flight instructor reported that there was no mechanical malfunction/failure with the airplane that would have precluded normal airplane operation.