Airplane Factory (PTY) LTD SLING LSA accident near Torrance, California, March 23, 2022
On March 23, 2022 at about 5:45 pm local time, a 2019 Airplane Factory (PTY) LTD SLING LSA, registered N863SL, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Torrance, California (Zamperini Field Airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor’s loss of airplane control during an aborted landing due to a wind shift, which resulted in an impact with a runway sign.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 23, 2022 · about 5:45 pm local time · cases in 2022
- Place
- Torrance, California · Zamperini Field Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Airplane Factory (PTY) LTD SLING LSA, built 2019 · all SLING LSAs on the register
- Registration
- N863SL · registry record · serial 302
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor of the airplane reported that, during an instructional flight with a student flight instructor, he purposely “flared too much and a little too high.” The intent was for the student flight instructor to correct; however, he did not intervene. The flight instructor added full power to abort the landing when the airplane encountered a shift from a headwind to a right quartering tailwind and the airplane drifted to the right. While maneuvering the airplane to stay over the runway, the left aileron struck a runway sign. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left aileron. The flight instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
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 landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Instructor/check pilot
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Sign/marker › Effect on equipment
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Sudden wind shift › Effect on operation
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,850 hours in all; 350 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 1,750 as pilot in command; 1,650 on instruments
- Last flight review: December 7, 2021
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 233 hours in all; 232 in this make and model; 43.6 in the last 90 days; 10.6 in the last 30 days; 136.8 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: February 25, 2022
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,872 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 17, 2022; 31 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912IS (piston); 904 hours total
- Operator: Aviation Financial CORP
The flight
- Departed from: KTOA Torrance CA at 4:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29L, 3,000 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.14 inHg
- Observation at 10:47 am from KTOA
Weather report (METAR): KTOA 231747Z 00000KT 10SM SKC 27/07 A3014
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Photographs from the investigation 1 picture from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
The NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on June 30, 2022. 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.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Damage Photo | PDF, 1 page · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N863SL on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Airplane Factory (Pty) Ltd SLING LSA 18 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Engine: Rotax 912IS 878 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Zamperini Field · nearest airport
- Zamperini Field · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in California 9,080 since 1982 · 1,097 in the last ten years
- California 27,897 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/WPR22LA135.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.