# NTSB ATL05CA060: Savage RV-8, N187WS, Goldsboro, NC, March 9, 2005 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: March 9, 2005, 13:30 local (18:30 UTC) - Place: Goldsboro, NC - Coordinates: 35.289165, -78.18 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.2892&lon=-78.1800&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 1 minor - Status: Completed, report June 8, 2005 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA Greensboro FSD - 05 - NTSB case key (mKey): 61117 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ATL05CA060 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/61117/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL05CA060 ## Probable cause The pilot's excessive braking during landing roll, which resulted in a nose-over. A factor was the tailwind. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Nose over, landing - roll - weather condition - tailwind (contributing factor) - brakes(normal) - excessive, pilot in command (cause) ## Analysis The pilot stated he entered a left downwind for runway 03 and the windsock showed light to moderate winds. The pilot performed a wheels-landing touchdown, and during the landing roll at approximately 60 to 65 knots, the tail of the airplane lifted. The pilot stated he applied full aft stick, but the tail continued to rise, the propeller struck the ground, and the airplane nosed over. The pilot, who was the builder of the airplane, reported no mechanical malfunction with the airplane. He stated he completed a modification to the rudder pedals a few days earlier, and the change allowed his feet to sit higher on the pedals. He stated he believed he unintentionally applied light brake pressure during the touchdown and landing roll. A review of recorded weather data from Seymour Johnson AFB, Goldsboro, North Carolina, located 11 nautical miles east of the accident site, revealed at 1355 reported winds were from 240 degrees at 9 knots, variable between 190 and 290 degrees. ## Factual narrative On March 9, 2005, about 1330 eastern standard time, a Savage RV-8 experimental airplane, N187WS, registered to and operated by the commercial pilot, nosed over during landing at Cox - Grantham Airfield, a private airstrip in Goldsboro, North Carolina. The personal flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with no flight plan filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The commercial pilot received minor injuries, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The flight departed Goldsboro - Wayne Municipal Airport, Goldsboro, North Carolina, at 1310. The pilot stated he entered a left downwind for runway 03 and looked at the windsock, and winds were light to moderate. The pilot continued in the pattern for runway 03 and stated the approach was normal with a slip to a wheels-landing touchdown approximately 500 feet down the runway. The pilot stated that, during the landing roll at approximately 60 to 65 knots, the tail of the airplane lifted. The pilot stated he applied full aft stick, but the tail continued to rise, the propeller struck the ground, and the airplane nosed over. Examination of the airplane revealed damage to the wings, propeller, vertical stabilizer, and canopy; the firewall was displaced aft, and the fuselage was buckled aft of the cabin. The pilot, who was the builder of the airplane, reported no mechanical malfunction with the airplane. He stated he completed a modification to the rudder pedals a few days earlier, and the change allowed his feet to sit higher on the pedals. He stated he believed he unintentionally applied light brake pressure during the touchdown and landing roll. A review of recorded weather data from Seymour Johnson AFB, Goldsboro, North Carolina, located 11 nautical miles east of the accident site, revealed at 1355 reported winds were from 240 degrees at 9 knots, variable between 190 and 290 degrees. A review of recorded weather data from Goldsboro - Wayne Municipal Airport, Goldsboro, North Carolina, located 14.6 nautical miles northeast of the accident site, revealed at 1340 reported winds were from 200 degrees at 7 knots. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N187WS](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N187WS-2008-06-13), registration cancelled 2008-06-13, S/N 80615, built 2004 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Savage RV-8 - Registry model: [Savage William Raymond RV-8](https://openairdocs.org/model/savage-william-raymond-rv-8) (registry code 05617XT) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming I0360 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-i0360-series) (registry code 41515, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: 80615 - Engines: Lycoming IO-360-A1B6 reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: William R Savage - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Departed: KGWW, Goldsboro, NC - Destination: Goldsboro, NC - Airport: 6NC0, Cox - Grantham Airfield, runway 03, 2,800 × 50 ft, grass/turf ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 37; injuries: minor; commercial; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, without waivers/limitations; seat: front; flight hours: 304 total, 22 in this make and model, 215 as pilot in command, 30 in the last 90 days, 6 in the last 30 days, 0 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 240° at 9 knots - Visibility: 7 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 25,000 ft overcast - Temperature: 48 °F, dew point 19 °F - Altimeter: 29.94 inHg - Observed at: KGSB, 11 nm away ## 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 20050309003669A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20050309003669A), Mar 9, 2005: Amtr RV8, Grantham, NC, Substantial damage. (-23) A "wheels" landing was made downwind on a grass strip with a left quartering wind estimated to be 8-10 KTS. While the tail was up during the roll out… 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.