# Accident 20020202002769A: Aviat PITTSS2B, Hawthorne, CA, February 2, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: February 2, 2002, 11:19 local time
- Place: Hawthorne, CA
- Airport: Hawthorne Municipal Airport
- Damage: No damage
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 33.9269° N, 118.3364° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.9269&lon=-118.3364&mi=10
- Aircraft: N300PS, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N300PS-2003-06-11) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Aviat PITTS S-2B (registry code 2210403, https://openairdocs.org/model/aviat-pitts-s-2b) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming AEIO-540 series (registry code 41568, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-aeio-540-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AVIAT PITTSS2B
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX02LA074](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA074) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020202002769A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) ON FEBRUARY 2, 2002, AT APPROXIMATELY 11:19 PACIFIC STANDARD TIME, AN AVIAT PITTS S2B SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO THE LEFT LOWER WING TIP AFTER A LOSS OF DIRECTIONAL CONTROL AND SUBSEQUENT IMPACT WITH A RUNWAY LIGHT. THE WING TIP FABRIC WAS TORN IN AN IRREGULAR MANNER EXPOSING THE FORWARD AND AFT WING SPAR. THE FIRST AND SECOND OUTBOARD WOODEN WING RIBS WERE SHATTERED. THE WOODEN AFT WING SPAR WAS SPLIT AT THE OUTBOARD TIP, EXHIBITING AN IRREGULAR FRACTURE SURFACE. THE FRONT WING SPAR WAS NOT DAMAGED. THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR ON BOARD WAS CONDUCTING AN AIRCRAFT CHECK-OUT WITH A RENTER PILOT AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. HE STATED THAT SHORTLY AFTER TOUCHDOWN, THE AIRPLANE BEGAN DIVERGING TO THE RIGHT OF THE RUNWAY CENTERLINE. THE INSTRUCTOR APPLIED FULL LEFT RUDDER, BUT THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED TO DIVERGE TO THE RIGHT, RESULTING IN THE IMPACT WITH THE RUNWAY LIGHT. UPON INSPECTION OF THE AIRPLANE, IT WAS NOTED THAT THE RIGHT MAIN GEAR BUNGEE DOOR HAD OPENED. WHEN MOVING THE AIRPLANE, THE RIGHT MAIN GEAR WAS CONSIDERABLY WEAKER (LESS SUPPORTIVE) THAN THE LEFT.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB LAX02LA074](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA074), Feb 2, 2002: Aviat Pitts S-2B (N300PS), Hawthorne, CA, substantial damage. Probable cause: Failure of the student to maintain directional control of the airplane on the landing rollout and failure of the CFI to adequately supervise the flight. A contributing factor was the decreased…

## Other reports on N300PS (1)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Accident 20030201001829A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030201001829A), Feb 1, 2003: Aviat PITTSS2B (N300PS), Long Beach, CA, Destroyed. (-23) On February 01, 2003, at approximately 1051 PST, a pitts model number S-2B, N300PS, nosed over during the take off portion of a touch-and-go at Long…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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