Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during takeoff, which resulted in a runway excursion and collision with a sign.
NTSB analysis
The pilot was preparing to depart for a personal flight but had not correctly set the airplane’s flaps for takeoff. During the takeoff the pilot rotated the airplane, but it would not climb due to the incorrect flap setting and it remained in ground effect. The airplane drifted off the side of the runway in the prevailing crosswind and struck a taxiway sign with the left main landing gear and empennage, which resulted in substantial damage to the left horizontal stabilizer. The pilot subsequently landed the airplane in a field that was off to the side of the runway uneventfully.
Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA25LA325 for the full record.
Event
- Date
- Aug 31, 2025
- Type
- Accident
- Place
- Lebanon, Ohio
- Nearest airport
- Warren County/John Lane Fld (I68)
- Highest injury
- None
- Weather
- Visual (VMC)
- Light
- Day
Cessna 182
- N-number
- N628FN
- Category
- Airplane
- Year built
- 1998
- Damage
- Substantial
- Operating rule
- Part 91 (general aviation)
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
From the NTSB aviation accident database: N-registered aircraft, events since 2008, data through Oct 28, 2026. The file is published monthly, so the latest weeks are incomplete and recent records can change. The official source is the NTSB aviation investigation search. CheckAero is independent and not affiliated with the NTSB.