# NTSB ATL04LA092: Cessna 140, N527ST, Greenville, SC, April 8, 2004 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: April 8, 2004, 14:41 local (18:41 UTC) - Place: Greenville, SC - Coordinates: 34.847778, -82.349998 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.8478&lon=-82.3500&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report April 28, 2005 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Columbia FSDO-13 - NTSB case key (mKey): 59042 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ATL04LA092 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/59042/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL04LA092 ## Probable cause Fatigue failure of the leaf spring gear strut. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Gear collapsed, landing - roll - landing gear,main gear spring - fatigue (cause) ## Analysis The pilot was cleared to land and went through his approach check with everything normal. The airplane crossed over the landing threshold and settled onto the runway in a three point landing attitude. During the landing roll, the pilot felt the left wing start to dip and the airplane vibrating. The airplane turned approximately 20-degrees to the right, the left front side struck the runway and the airplane came to a stop. The pilot had completed a series of touch and go landings, and during the accident landing, the leaf spring landing gear assembly broke. Examination revealed that the leaf spring gear strut fracture stemmed from an area of fatigue cracking that initiated at the upper forward side of the inboard hole for the step attachment bolts. Given the observed corrosion in the bolt hole, it was determined that the fatigue originated from corrosion pitting. For fatigue to initiate at the upper side of the spring strut, the upper side must have been placed in tension. According to the aircraft maintenance logbook for the 1946 built airplane, the leaf spring gear assembly and the total airframe time was 3,375 hours. ## Factual narrative On April 8, 2004, at 1441 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 140, N527ST, registered to and operated by a private pilot, main landing gear collapsed during landing on runway 19 at Greenville Downtown Airport, Greenville, South Carolina. The personal flight operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed. The airplane was substantially damaged and the private pilot received no injuries. The flight departed Oconee County Regional Airport, Clemson, South Carolina, on April 8, 2004 at 1315. During the personal flight, the pilot made initial contact with the Greenville Downtown Airport tower six miles from the airport and was given instructions to enter the right downwind for runway 19. The pilot was cleared to land and went through his approach checklist with everything normal. The airplane crossed over the landing threshold and settled onto the runway in a three point landing attitude. During landing roll, the pilot felt the left wing start to dip and the airplane vibrating. The airplane turned approximately 20-degrees to the right, the left front side struck the runway and the airplane came to a stop. The pilot had completed a series of touch and go landings, and during the accident landing, the leaf spring gear assembly broke. The fracture faces were removed and preserved for further examination. Further examination revealed that the leaf spring gear strut fracture stemmed from an area of fatigue cracking that initiated at the upper forward side of the inboard hole for the step attachment bolts. Given the observed corrosion in the bolt hole, it was determined that the fatigue originated from corrosion pitting. For fatigue to initiate at the upper side of the spring strut, the upper side must have been placed in tension. According the the aircraft maintenance logbook for the 1946 built airplane, the leaf spring gear assembly and the total airframe time was 3,375 hours. ## Aircraft - Registration: N527ST (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: Cessna 140 - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 8527 - Airframe hours: 3375 - Engines: Continental C-85-12F 85 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Edward M Spinelli - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, June 9, 2003, 116 hours before - Departed: CEU, Clemson, SC - Destination: GMU, Greenville, SC - Airport: KGMU, Greenville Downtown Airport, runway 19, 5,400 × 100 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 43; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; last flight review May 23, 2002; seat: left; flight hours: 530 total, 109 in this make and model, 429 as pilot in command ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 230° at 7 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Temperature: 66 °F, dew point 52 °F - Altimeter: 29.67 inHg - Observed at: KGMU ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20040408004919A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040408004919A), Apr 8, 2004: Cessna 140, Greenville, SC, Substantial damage. (-23) Pilot reported that on landing the left wing dropped and then the aircraft made an immediate right turn. Marks on the runway confirmed pilot's statement.… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.