GRENIER RAYMOND VANS AIRCRAFT RV-8 near Nashua, NH — 2011-11-09

Final reportERA12LA069

Date: 2011-11-09
Location: Nashua, NH, USA
Airport: KASH
Aircraft: GRENIER RAYMOND VANS AIRCRAFT RV-8
Registration: N220RG
Category: Airplane
Highest injury: None
Fatalities: 0
Phase of flight: Landing

Probable cause

The right main landing gear collapse due to the overload fracture of the hardware for reasons that could not be determined during postaccident testing and examination.

NTSB narrative

The pilot and passenger were returning from a local area flight. The wheel landing and landing roll were described as normal. About 1,000 feet down the runway, the right main gear collapsed, and the airplane ground looped. Postaccident examination showed that spring brackets and a bolt from the right main landing gear had fractured. Metallurgical examination revealed that all fractures were due to overload failure. The postaccident examination was unable to determine the initiating event that resulted in the overload failure and landing gear collapse.