# Incident 20030425014779I: Ayres S2C, Sebring, FL, April 25, 2003 - Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: April 25, 2003, 16:00 local time - Place: Sebring, FL - Airport: Sebring Regional Airport - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Ground Taxi, Other Airplane - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 27.4564° N, 81.3424° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at SEBRING RGNL (SEF), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=27.4564&lon=-81.3424&mi=10 - Aircraft: N340BF, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N340BF) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Aviat S-2C (registry code 8130001, https://openairdocs.org/model/aviat-s-2c) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming AEIO-540 series (registry code 41568, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-aeio-540-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: AYRES S2C - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 8,000 total, 7,000 in this make and model, 30 in the last 90 days - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030425014779I ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) EVENTS OF 25 APRIL AT APPROXIMATELY 4:00 PM AT THE SEBRING AIRPORT, SEBRING, FLORIDA. I WAS TAXIING ON A YELLOW LINED MARKED TAXIWAY TO THE RUN UP AREA TO DO AN ENGINE CHECK AND THEN, IF SUCCESSFUL, TO FLY. I WAS "S TURNING" DOWN THE TAXI WAY AT IDLE SPEED WITH OCCASIONAL BRAKING TO SEE SIDE TO SIDE ABOUT 100 FEET BEFORE BEGINNING A 45 DEGREE TURNS TO THE RIGHT. I OBSERVED A HIGH WING CESSNA AT MY 11 O'CLOCK POSITION, APPARENTLY COMING OUT OF A HANGAR AREA. IT APPEARED, AND I BELIEVED THE AIRCRAFT TO BE STOPPED. LOOKING TO THE RIGHT IN NOTICED A WHITE 1/2 TON PICKUP TRUCK, A GMC OR CHEVROLET SITTING STILL ON THE YELLOW LINE AT MY 2:00 POSITION AND ABOUT 300 FEET DISTANT FROM ME. I DID NOT KNOW WHETHER THE TRUCK WAS PLANNING ON MOVING OR NOT. I CONTINUED TO S TURN AND BELIEVED THE CESSNA STILL TO BE STOPPED AT MY 11 O'CLOCK. COMING RIGHT I SUDDENLY SAW A WING SWEEPING IN FRONT OF ME FROM THE LEFT. I ATTEMPTED A QUICK STOP BUT COULD NOT STOP FAST ENOUGH TO AVOID THE WING SWEEPING THROUGH MY PROP AND OVER MY RIGHT WING AS HE CONTINUED TO TURN LEFT INTO WHAT HE SAID LATER WAS A PARKING SPOT ACROSS THE TAXI WAY FROM WHERE HE WAS LOCATED WHEN I FIRST SAW HIM. HE FURTHER STATED THATHE BELIEVED HE COULD "GET IN FRONT OF ME." I BELIEVE I WAS TOTALLY STOPPED BEFORE HIS TAIL PORTION SWEPT UNDER MY COWLING AND ON FORWARD TO MY RIGHT. PICTURES, I BELIEVE WILL DEMONSTRATE THE CESSNA WING SWEPT FROM MY LEFT TO MY RIGHT ACROSS THE LEADING EDGE AND TOP OF MY RIGHT WING AND THAT THE TAIL OF THE CESSNA SWEPT UNDER MY NOSE BOWL AND COWLING SCRAPING FROM MY LEFT TO MY RIGHT. I DID NOT INSPECT THE CESSNA DAMAGE BUT DID OBSERVE THE PICTURES THAT GEORGE LITTLEFIELD OF THE ORLANDO FSDO SHOWED ME ON SATURDAY WHEN HE CAME TO THE SEBRING AIRPORT. IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE INCIDENT ONE OF THE OFFICIALS OF THE AEROBATIC CONTEST WENT DOWN TO CARTER AIRCRAFT AND PICKED UP ROGER SMITH. HE WAS ON THE SCENE WITHIN 10 MINUTES AS WAS THE AVIAT AIRCRAFT REPRESENTATIVE DANNY ADAMS, WHO IS ALSO IN CHARGE OF PITTS AIRCRAFT REBUILDING AT THE AVIAT FACTORY. THE DECISION WAS MADE BY ALL TO TAXI THE AIRCRAFT TO CARTER AIRCRAFT'S HANGAR AT THE SOUTH END OF THE FIELD. DAMAGE WAS VISIBLE AS PAINT SCRATCHES ON THE 3 BLADES OF THE KEVLAR HARTZELL PROPELLER, BUT NO GOUGES OR CUTS WERE OBSERVED. THE LOWER NOSE BOWL WAS SCRAPED, AND 2 OF THE 3 LOWER METAL ENGINE COWLING PIECES WERE SCRAPED AND POSSIBLE INDENTED AS MUCH AS 1 INCH. THE UPPER RIGHT WING HAD SCRAPES ACROSS THE LEADING EDGE AND TOP SURFACE WITH A HOLE APPROXIMATELY 1 INCHE IN DIAMETER PUNCHED INT THE TOP SURFACE JUST OUTSIDE OF THE ATTACH POINT OF THE INTERWING BRACING RIB. NO OTHER DAMAGE TO THE PITTS WAS OBSERVABLE AT THIS TIME. WITHIN MINUTES OF MY RETURNING FROM CARTER AIRCRAFT, WHERE I ALSO PHONED MY INSURANCE COMPANY, FALCON INSURANCE COMPANY, TWO PEOPLE SOUGHT ME OUT AND VOLUNTEERED THAT THEY WERE IMMEDIATELY BEHIND ME GOING DOWN THE TAXIWAY IN A GOLF CART TO A HANGAR AND SAW THE ENTIRE INCIDENT. THE ADULT, ^PRIVACY DATA OM^ ON SATURDAY MET WITH THE FAA INSPECTOR, GEORGE LITTLEFIELD, AND GAVE A STATEMENT. THE SECOND PERSON ALSO GAVE A VERBAL AND WRITTEN STATEMENT TO MR. LITTLEFIELD, STATING THE EVENTS AS THEY UNFOLDED AND THE FACT THAT THE OTHER PILOT TOLD HIM AND OTHERS DIRECTLY THAT THE SAW THE PITTS BUT THEN DECIDED THAT HE COULD CROSS IN FRONT OF IT BEFORE THE PITTS GOT THERE. ITEMS TO NOTE: 1. I WAS ON AN ACTIVE TAXIWAY S TURNING ON THE YELLOW LINE. 2. I OBSERVED THE CESSNA TO BE STOPPED WELL CLEAR OF THE TAXIWAY. 3. THE CESSNA WAS TO MY LEFT AND I WAS TO THE CESSNA'S RIGHT. 4. I WAS ALSO COGNIZANT OF THE PICKUP TRUCK TO MY RIGHT. 5. I STOPPED AS QUICKLY AS I COULD. 6. THE CESSNA CONTINUED ON A LEFT TURNING COURSE AND STOPPED WELL TO MY RIGHT, MAYBE 20 OR 30 FEET. I CERTIFY THIS TO BE A TRUE AND HONEST STATEMENT OF THE FACTS OCCURRING ON 25 APRIL, 2003. (WILLIAM B. FINAGIN/CFI/COMM. 1374251) ABOVE IS PILOT'S STATEMENT. ## Other reports on N340BF (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Accident 20141028021399A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20141028021399A), Oct 28, 2014: Aviat Aircraft Inc S-2C (N340BF), Rutland, VT, Substantial damage. Pilot landed at rut airport with substantial gusting winds. Upon touchdown, aircraft ground looped, causing damage to tail, elevator, right wing tip, right… 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. 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