Primary finding
Probable cause
The pilot's inadequate compensation for the existing crosswind conditions and his failure to maintain directional control of the aircraft. A factor in the accident was the pilot's limited total flight experience.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The 27 hour student pilot was on his third unsupervised solo flight and flew to this airport to practice touch and go landings. The pilot said that just after touchdown in a slight crosswind the aircraft began veering to the left and he applied right rudder and brake inputs. The aircraft then began veering to the right and the student reported that he over corrected back to the left with brakes and rudder. The pilot stated that he could not correct the drift prior to the aircraft departing the runway pavement and encountering soft soil, which bent the nose landing gear and buckled the firewall.
Source record
Factual narrative
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