Cessna 172S Skyhawk, Civil Air Patrol, N917CP: Accident occurred May 14, 2016 in Shawnee, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma

CIVIL AIR PATROL INC: http://registry.faa.gov/N917CP

FAA Flight Standards District Office:  FAA Oklahoma City FSDO-15

NTSB Identification: GAA16CA253
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, May 14, 2016 in Shawnee, OK
Probable Cause Approval Date: 09/12/2016
Aircraft: CESSNA 172, registration: N917CP
Injuries: 2 Uninjured.

NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.

According to the pilot, during the taxi from the runway to parking, he made a left turn into his parking space. He reported that he had parked at this location many times before, and that his main concern at the time, was to ensure that he did not run over the rope tie downs on the parking space. During the left turn, although the main landing gear remained on the asphalt, the right wing extended beyond the asphalt, and into the grass area where the right wing struck a light pole. The light pole had been erected about 45 days prior, and was positioned in the grass, about 5 feet away from the asphalt. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing spar.

The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies with the airplane that would have prevented normal flight operations.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:

The pilot's failure to remain a safe distance from obstacles while taxiing to parking, resulting in the airplane's wing striking a light pole.