Pilot Debrief

BARROW ROSE PARRAKEET near Castroville, TX — 2013-09-07

Final reportCEN13LA534
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Date
2013-09-07
Location
Castroville, TX, USA
Airport
CVB
Aircraft
BARROW ROSE PARRAKEET
Registration
N1732
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Landing

Probable cause

The failure of the left main landing gear wheel on landing due to overstress, which resulted in the pilot’s loss of directional control. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's improper decision to install wheels with insufficient loading capacity for the airplane.

NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that, during the landing roll, the left main landing gear wheel fractured. The experimental-homebuilt airplane subsequently veered off the runway and flipped over. Postaccident examination of the fractured left main wheel revealed that the wheel failed due to overstress of the cast aluminum alloy; no evidence of preexisting cracks was observed. According to the pilot, the wheel had accrued only 11.4 hours since he had installed it, and it had about 15 cycles (landings) at the time of the accident. The wheels installed on the airplane were designed for ultralight aircraft that have an empty weight of less than 254 pounds. The accident airplane weighed about 954 pounds and would have required wheels with a higher loading capability.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Mechanical failure
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have chosen a different wheel manufacturer before the flight.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • 2 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents2

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