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20121028024609I

Incident · Minor damage
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FAA incident report · Piper J3C-65 · Wichita, KS · October 28, 2012

FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal

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Date
October 28, 2012 · 15:00 local
Place
Wichita, KS
Airport
Colonel James Jabara
Phase of flight
Landing: Rollout
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
Minor damage
Aircraft
N9499H
Reported as
Piper J3C-65
Reported engine
Continental C85-12
People aboard
2
Fatal injuries
0
Other injuries
0
Pilot’s certificates
Commercial pilot, flight instructor
Pilot’s flight hours
1,865 total320 in this make and model25 in the last 90 days
N9499HRegistered now · Piper J3C-65S/N 13256 · Built 1945Airframe modelPiper J3C-65Engine modelContinental A&C65 seriesReciprocating

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

The pilot in command was providing flight instruction to an airline transport rated pilot in a conventional gear aircraft. This flight was the first instructional flight for the student in this aircraft. The instructor and student departed the hard surface runway and practiced inflight maneuvers outside the airport area before the student performed two takeoffs and landings on a turf runway. Upon return to the departure airport (hard surface runway) the aircraft touched down and ground looped to the right departing the left side of the runway at an approximate 80 degrees from the landing direction. As the turn progressed the rate of turn increased and at approximately 170 degrees from the landing direction, the descending propeller blade struck the top of a precision approach path indicator (PAPI) light unit. The instructor reported that he cautioned the student that the paved runway was more challenging than the turf and required more precise directional control. As the student flared the instructor recognized a slight drift in the calm to light southeast wind, but considered it within reasonable tolerances to correct when the aircraft touched down. Upon landing the empennage of the aircraft started to move right and the instructor took control but was unable to recover from the induced ground loop. Both propeller blades show impact damage with one greater than the other. The right landing gear strut shows a small area of paint abrasion of the top coat and a minor dent approximately one sixteenth of an inch deep. The aircrafts right rear valve cover struck the same unit bending the bottom edge of the cover and creating an oil leak. The aircrafts right tire outboard sidewall, showed signs of scuffing the PAPI light unit's concrete base. According to the instructor the aircraft was moving 2 to 3 miles per hour when it struck the PAPI unit. The engine was at idle at impact and stopped when the propeller struck the PAPI unit. There were no injuries to either of the pilots.

As the FAA filed it

THE PILOT IN COMMAND WAS PROVIDING FLIGHT INSTRUCTION TO AN AIRLINE TRANSPORT RATED PILOT IN A CONVENTIONAL GEAR AIRCRAFT. THIS FLIGHT WAS THE FIRST INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT FOR THE STUDENT IN THIS AIRCRAFT. THE INSTRUCTOR AND STUDENT DEPARTED THE HARD SURFACE RUNWAY AND PRACTICED INFLIGHT MANEUVERS OUTSIDE THE AIRPORT AREA BEFORE THE STUDENT PERFORMED TWO TAKEOFFS AND LANDINGS ON A TURF RUNWAY. UPON RETURN TO THE DEPARTURE AIRPORT (HARD SURFACE RUNWAY) THE AIRCRAFT TOUCHED DOWN AND GROUND LOOPED TO THE RIGHT DEPARTING THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY AT AN APPROXIMATE 80 DEGREES FROM THE LANDING DIRECTION. AS THE TURN PROGRESSED THE RATE OF TURN INCREASED AND AT APPROXIMATELY 170 DEGREES FROM THE LANDING DIRECTION, THE DESCENDING PROPELLER BLADE STRUCK THE TOP OF A PRECISION APPROACH PATH INDICATOR (PAPI) LIGHT UNIT. THE INSTRUCTOR REPORTED THAT HE CAUTIONED THE STUDENT THAT THE PAVED RUNWAY WAS MORE CHALLENGING THAN THE TURF AND REQUIRED MORE PRECISE DIRECTIONAL CONTROL. AS THE STUDENT FLARED THE INSTRUCTOR RECOGNIZED A SLIGHT DRIFT IN THE CALM TO LIGHT SOUTHEAST WIND, BUT CONSIDERED IT WITHIN REASONABLE TOLERANCES TO CORRECT WHEN THE AIRCRAFT TOUCHED DOWN. UPON LANDING THE EMPENNAGE OF THE AIRCRAFT STARTED TO MOVE RIGHT AND THE INSTRUCTOR TOOK CONTROL BUT WAS UNABLE TO RECOVER FROM THE INDUCED GROUND LOOP.BOTH PROPELLER BLADES SHOW IMPACT DAMAGE WITH ONE GREATER THAN THE OTHER. THE RIGHT LANDING GEAR STRUT SHOWS A SMALL AREA OF PAINT ABRASION OF THE TOP COAT AND A MINOR DENT APPROXIMATELY ONE SIXTEENTH OF AN INCH DEEP. THE AIRCRAFTS RIGHT REAR VALVE COVER STRUCK THE SAME UNIT BENDING THE BOTTOM EDGE OF THE COVER AND CREATING AN OIL LEAK. THE AIRCRAFTS RIGHT TIRE OUTBOARD SIDEWALL, SHOWED SIGNS OF SCUFFING THE PAPI LIGHT UNIT'S CONCRETE BASE. ACCORDING TO THE INSTRUCTOR THE AIRCRAFT WAS MOVING 2 TO 3 MILES PER HOUR WHEN IT STRUCK THE PAPI UNIT. THE ENGINE WAS AT IDLE AT IMPACT AND STOPPED WHEN THE PROPELLER STRUCK THE PAPI UNIT. THERE WERE NO INJURIES TO EITHER OF THE PILOTS.