Cessna 182P accident near Levelland, Texas, February 18, 2011
On February 18, 2011 at about 2:40 am local time, a Cessna 182P, registered N325LA, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Levelland, Texas (Levelland Municipal airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed and 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane during a landing and subsequent go-around with a crosswind.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 18, 2011 · about 2:40 am local time · cases in 2011
- Place
- Levelland, Texas · Levelland Municipal · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed and 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182P · all 182Ps on the register
- Registration
- N325LA · registry record · serial 18263608
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was on a night visual flight rules cross-country flight to an uncontrolled airport. The pilot was performing a straight-in approach with a 10- to 11-knot direct crosswind; after touching down the airplane began to veer toward the runway edge. The pilot attempted a go-around; however, during the attempt, the airplane experienced an aerodynamic stall and its left wing struck the ground just off the runway's edge. The airplane tumbled, impacting the ground and coming to rest inverted in the adjacent grass field. A surviving passenger said that the touchdown was very rough and that he moved in the airplane from side to side. A postaccident examination of the airplane showed no preimpact anomalies with the airplane.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Loss of control in flight during takeoff defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Crosswind › Effect on operation
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › (general) › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 550 hours in all
- Last flight review: March 18, 2010
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,971 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 7, 2010; 132 hours since
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor O-470 SERIES (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LBB Lubbock TX
- Destination: LLN Levelland TX
- Flight plan: not recorded
- Runway 17, 6,110 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 267° at 10 knots, gusting 11
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.97 inHg
- Observation at 2:40 am from LEVE, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
16 documents, released by the NTSB on July 26, 2012. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Other NTSB records under N325LA the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N325LA on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 182 Skylane 11,834 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,677 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Cont Motor O-470 SERIES 12,780 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Levelland Municipal · nearest airport
- Lubbock Preston Smith International · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Texas 6,244 since 1982 · 1,063 in the last ten years
- Texas 29,976 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N325LA 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CEN11FA195.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.