Pilot Debrief

FLOURNOY MARTIN R FLOURNOY MR S1S near Colorado Springs, CO — 2011-05-22

Final reportCEN11LA361
Sign in to save
Date
2011-05-22
Location
Colorado Springs, CO, USA
Airport
KFLY
Aircraft
FLOURNOY MARTIN R FLOURNOY MR S1S
Registration
N457CF
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Landing

Probable cause

The pilot’s loss of directional control during the landing rollout due to failure of the tailwheel assembly for undetermined reasons.

NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he made a normal touchdown, but during the rollout the airplane began to yaw to the left. He attempted to correct his loss of directional control by applying full right rudder and right brake. Despite his efforts to straighten the airplane's path, the airplane began to bounce/skip to the side and subsequently ground looped. During the impact sequence, the lower right wing tip, aileron and aft section of the fuselage sustained substantial damage. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the tailwheel spring attach bolt had pulled through the fuselage structure where it was mounted. The bolt was intact and there was no obvious damage to the threads. It could not be determined why the bolt separated prior to the accident.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Mechanical failure
First missed decision gate
Pilot could have inspected the tailwheel assembly before flight.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • 2 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents2

Related mishaps