Czech Sport Aircraft As PIPER SPORT accident near Crownpoint, New Mexico, April 24, 2026
On April 24, 2026 at about 9:45 pm local time, a 2010 Czech Sport Aircraft As PIPER SPORT, registered N610PS, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Crownpoint, New Mexico. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to correctly identify the runway, which resulted in a landing on a residential driveway and collision with a gate.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 24, 2026 · about 9:45 pm local time · cases in 2026
- Place
- Crownpoint, New Mexico · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Czech Sport Aircraft As PIPER SPORT, built 2010 · all PIPER SPORTs on the register
- Registration
- N610PS · registry record · serial P1001013
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that while enroute he became ill and notified air traffic control (ATC) who then vectored him to the closest airport. The pilot identified what he thought was the airport, but then completed a descent and landing on a residential driveway. During landing the airplane impacted a gate extension, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operations.
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
- Off-field or emergency landing during landing (landing roll)
- Collision during takeoff/land during landing (landing roll) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Physical › Impairment/incapacitation › Illness/injury › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Identification/recognition › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 936 hours in all; 656 in this make and model; 41 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 936 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: February 26, 2026
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,350 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 22, 2025
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912ULS (piston); 1,100 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AEG Albuquerque NM at 8:46 pm
- Destination: 1L8 Hurricane UT
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 23 knots, gusting 34
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 7°F (-14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.89 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from KGUP, 33 miles away
Weather report (METAR): METAR KGUP 242153Z AUTO 23023G34KT 10SM CLR 20/M14 A2989 RMK AO2 PK WND 23034/2152 SLP047 T02001139=
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The NTSB has not released the docket for this case yet. The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), is usually released when the investigation is nearly complete, and the list here is refreshed when it appears. Check at the NTSB.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N610PS on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Czech Sport Aircraft As PIPER SPORT 59 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Czech Sport Aircraft As 59 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Rotax 912ULS 62 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Crownpoint Airport · nearest airport
- Double Eagle II Airport · departed from
- General Dick Stout Field · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in New Mexico 1,423 since 1982 · 184 in the last ten years
- New Mexico 3,111 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/WPR26LA167.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.