- Date
- April 20, 2009, 17:42 local (22:42 UTC)
- Place
- McKinney, TX
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N273MSAmerican Legend AL-3C
- Defining event
- Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 11, 2009
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20090420004459A
- Case key
- 73705
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
THe pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane during landing. Contributing to the accident were gusty crosswinds.
Findings · 4
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
During the landing rollout in gusty wind conditions, the commercial pilot applied too much pressure on the heel brake of his tailwheel-equipped single-engine airplane, which caused the tail to rise. The wind then carried the airplane over on to its back, which resulted in substantial damage to the left wing strut and vertical stabilizer.
Factual narrative
During the landing rollout in gusty crosswind conditions, the commercial pilot was attempting to keep his single-engine, tailwheel-equipped airplane on the centerline of the runway with rudder input and aileron control when he inadvertantly applied too much pressure on the heel brake. This caused the tail of the airplane to rise. The tail hung breifly in the air before the wind carried the airplane over on to its back, which resulted in substantial damage to the left wing strut and vertical stabilizer.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N273MS
- Reported as
- American Legend AL-3C
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- AL-1051
- Engine
- Continental O-200, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- McRight-Smith Aviation, LP
- Registered owner
- McRight-Smith Aviation, LP
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- TKI · McKinney, TX
- Destination
- TKI · McKinney, TX
- Flight plan
- Unknown
- Airport
- TKI · Collin COunty Regional Airport, runway 17
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 54
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3
- Flight hours
- 2,919 total · 88 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.