- Date
- January 2, 2011, 13:00 local (19:00 UTC)
- Place
- Carlisle, AR
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N876KFRardin William I Kitfox III
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 26, 2011
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- FAA report
- 20110102000129A
- Case key
- 78116
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
Failure of the left main landing gear strut due to a pre-existing crack in the weld joint.
Findings · 2
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
The pilot was landing his single-engine experimental airplane in calm wind conditions, when the left main gear collapsed upon touchdown. The airplane veered to the right and the pilot attempted to keep the airplane on the runway by applying engine power and right aileron; however, the airplane exited the runway and spun, which resulted in structural damage to the fuselage. A postaccident examination of the left main landing gear strut revealed that the strut failed due to a pre-existing crack in the weld joint. The crack would not have been readily visible to the pilot during a pre-flight inspection due to the construction of the strut. The bracing around the strut exhibited signs of distress with twisted and shiny fracture surfaces. No other anomalies were found with the airplane.
Factual narrative
The private pilot was landing his single-engine experimental airplane in calm wind conditions, when the left main gear collapsed upon touchdown. The airplane veered to the right and the pilot attempted to keep the airplane on the runway by applying engine power and right aileron; however, the airplane went off the runway and spun, which resulted in structural damage to the fuselage. Examination of the left main landing gear strut revealed that the strut failed due to a pre-existing crack in the weld joint. The crack would not have been readily visible to the pilot during a pre-flight inspection due to the construction of the strut. The bracing around the strut exhibited signs of distress with twisted and shiny fracture surfaces. No other anomalies were found with the airplane.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N876KF
- Reported as
- Rardin William I Kitfox III
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 876
- Engine
- Bombardier ROTAX (ALL), reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- John Roman
- Registered owner
- John Roman
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- ORK · N. Little Rock, AR
- Destination
- 4M3 · Carlisle, AR
- Airport
- 4M3 · Carlisle Municipal, runway 18
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
- 55
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3
- Flight hours
- 909 total · 59 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 19, 2011, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.8 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.