CEN11LA320

NTSB accident investigation · Commander 114-B · Sandusky, OH · May 4, 2011

Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
May 4, 2011, 14:00 local (18:00 UTC)
Place
Sandusky, OH
Injuries
1 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N114JGCommander 114-B
Defining event
Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report February 6, 2012
Report
Approved by Office Director
NTSB office
Central Region
Parties
Federal Aviation Administration - Cleveland FSDO
FAA report
20110504008339A
Case key
79040

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 inadequate directional control while landing in a variable crosswind.

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.

Performance/control parameters: directional controlAircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintainedCommander 114-B: 1 caseAll aircraft: 3,958 casesProbable cause
Wind: crosswindEnvironmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena · Ability to respond/compensateCommander 114-B: 1 caseAll aircraft: 1,008 cases

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 reported that the final approach with a left crosswind was uneventful. He stated that the airplane touched down on the main landing gear, slightly right of the runway centerline. The subsequent landing roll was uneventful for approximately 40 to 60 yards, and then the airplane began to veer to the left. The pilot's application of right rudder and full right brake were not successful in regaining directional control. The airplane departed the left side of the runway into an area of soft grass and then swerved back onto the runway before coming to rest. A postaccident examination of the main landing gear brake components and nose landing gear steering system did not reveal any preimpact anomalies or failures that would have prevented their normal operation. The pilot reported that there was a left crosswind of 6 knots during the landing attempt to the east. A nearby weather station reported that, during the hour following the accident, the wind velocity increased from 6 to 12 knots with 17 knot gusts. The same weather reports also indicated that the wind direction changed from a northerly to northwesterly direction during the same time period.

Factual narrative

On May 4, 2011, at 1400 eastern daylight time, a Commander Aircraft Company model 114-B airplane, N114JG, was substantially damaged when it departed the runway during landing at Griffing Sandusky Airport (KSKY), Sandusky, Ohio. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the private pilot, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Day visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which was operated without a flight plan. The personal flight originated from Kelleys Island Airport (89D), Kellys Island, Ohio, at 1340. The pilot reported that the final approach to runway 9 (3,559 feet by 60 feet, asphalt) was uneventful and that the wing flaps were fully extended during the landing attempt. He noted that there was a left crosswind of about 6 knots that required a left aileron input to maintain the runway centerline. He stated that the airplane touched down on the main landing gear, slightly right of the runway centerline. The subsequent landing roll was uneventful for approximately 40-60 yards before the airplane began to veer to the left. The pilot's application of right rudder and full right brake were not successful in regaining directional control. The airplane departed the left side of the runway into an area of soft grass. The airplane subsequently swerved back onto the runway before coming to rest. A postaccident inspection revealed that the right main landing gear had collapsed, the nose wheel strut was displaced about 10-degrees right of vertical, the engine firewall was buckled at several locations, and there was damage to the fuselage lower skins and structural bulkheads. Further examination of the main landing gear brake components and nose landing gear steering system did not reveal any preimpact anomalies or failures that would have prevented their normal operation. The nearest aviation weather observation station with recorded historical weather information was at Lorain County Regional Airport (KLPR), about 25 miles east-southeast of the accident site, which was equipped with an automated surface observing system (ASOS). At 1353, the KLPR ASOS reported the following weather conditions: Wind 360 degrees at 6 knots; visibility 10 miles; broken ceilings at 5,500 and 8,000 feet above ground level (agl); temperature 9 degrees Celsius; dew point 3 degrees Celsius; altimeter setting 30.29 inches of mercury. At 1453, the KLPR ASOS reported the following weather conditions: Wind 330 degrees at 12 knots, gusting 17 knots; visibility 10 miles; few clouds at 3,000 feet agl; temperature 10 degrees Celsius; dew point 3 degrees Celsius; altimeter setting 30.28 inches of mercury.

Aircraft

Registration
N114JG
Reported as
Commander 114-B
Category
Airplane
Serial number
14634
Airframe hours
917.3
Engine
Lycoming IO-540-T4B5, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Operator
Joe Edward Greene
Registered owner
Joe Edward Greene
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · May 7, 2010
Departed
89D · Kelley's Island, OH
Destination
KSKY · Sandusky, OH
Airport
KSKY · Griffing Sandusky Airport, runway 09, 3,559 × 60 ft, asphalt

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
68
Injuries
None
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land
Medical
Class 3, With waivers/limitations
Last flight review
May 9, 2009
Seat
Left
Flight hours
715 total · 353 in this make and model · 0 in the last 90 days · 0 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
360° at 6 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
5,500 ft broken
Temperature
48 °F, dew point 37 °F
Altimeter
30.29 inHg
Observed at
KLPR, 22 nm away

Docket · 3

The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 14, 2011, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 597 KB 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.