CEN12LA452

NTSB accident investigation · Mikoyan Gurevich MIG 21MF · Minneapolis, MN · July 12, 2012

Accident · Minor injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
July 12, 2012, 09:58 local (14:58 UTC)
Place
Minneapolis, MN
Injuries
1 minor
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N9307Mikoyan Gurevich MIG 21MF
Defining event
Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report November 6, 2013
Report
Approved by Office Director
NTSB office
Central Region
Parties
FAA/FSDO
FAA report
20120712014269A
Case key
84355

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 delayed application of wheel brakes to slow the airplane down on landing and the airplane’s failed drag chute, which resulted in a runway overrun.

Findings · 3

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.

Equipment/furnishingsAircraft › Aircraft systems · FailureMikoyan Gurevich MIG 21MF: 1 caseAll aircraft: 12 casesProbable cause
Landing gear system: brakeAircraft › Aircraft systems · Incorrect use/operationMikoyan Gurevich MIG 21MF: 1 caseAll aircraft: 297 casesProbable cause

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 established an appropriate speed during the approach and landed about 300 feet down the 5,000-foot-long runway. Within seconds of touching down, the pilot brought the throttle control to idle and deployed the drag chute. However, when the chute deployed, it did not fully inflate and then separated from the airplane. The pilot was not immediately aware the drag chute had failed and continued to try to deploy the chute. The pilot said that he used maximum braking to slow the airplane but was unable to stop the airplane on the runway. The pilot swerved to the left to avoid crossing a state highway, and the airplane struck a berm and a fence before it stopped. The pilot said that he had successfully tested the drag chute in preparation for this particular landing and had no previous problems deploying the chute before the accident. A review of performance data revealed that the pilot had sufficient runway length to land without use of the drag chute had he applied the wheel brakes immediately upon landing.

Factual narrative

On June 12, 2012, at 0958 central daylight time, a Mikoyan Gurevich Mig 21MF, was substantially damaged when it over ran the runway while landing at Flying Cloud Airport (FCM), Minneapolis, Minnesota. The airline transport pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot. An instrument flight rules flight plan was filed for the flight that departed from Ann Arbor Municipal Airport (ARB), Ann Arbor, Michigan, about 0630. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The pilot stated the airplane was going to be part of an exhibition being held at Flying Cloud airport that weekend. On final approach to runway 10R, he established a speed of 165 knots and landed approximately 300 feet down the 5,000-foot-long runway. Upon landing, the pilot brought the throttle to idle and deployed the drag chute. Since there was a delay in slowing the airplane down before the chute opened, the pilot said he initiated maximum braking. When the airplane did not slow down, he thought that he did not hit the button that deployed the chute hard enough and tried several more times before he realized he "had no chute." When the pilot knew that the airplane would go off the runway, he maneuvered it to the left and onto the grassy area adjacent to the runway to avoid crossing a state highway. The airplane struck a berm and a chain link fence before it came to rest upright. The left main landing gear collapsed and the right wing and fuselage were substantially damaged. The nose cone of the airplane and the left wing were also damaged. Several Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors were at the airport and witnessed the accident. According to one inspector, when the airplane was approximately halfway down the runway, the drag chute deployed. Before the chute fully opened, it departed the airplane and landed on the runway. The airplane continued down the runway at a high rate of speed before it veered left near the east end of the runway. The inspector said it looked like the airplane went up on its nose and then landed back down on its belly before it came to a rest near the edge of a highway. The pilot said he tested the drag chute approximately three weeks before the accident in preparation for this particular flight and there were no malfunctions of the system. He also said that he had successfully deployed the drag chute about 6 or 7 times prior to this accident without incident. A review of performance data for the airplane revealed the pilot had sufficient runway length to land without the drag chute.

Aircraft

Registration
N9307
Reported as
Mikoyan Gurevich MIG 21MF
Category
Airplane
Serial number
96004307
Engine
Tomansky R-13-300, turbo jet
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Operator
Ward William E
Registered owner
Ward William E
Airworthiness certificate
Special, Experimental (Special)
Departed
DKB · Dekalb, IL
Destination
FCM · Minneapolis, MN
Flight plan
VFR
Airport
FCM · Flying Cloud, runway 10R, 5,000 × 100 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
52
Injuries
Minor
Certificate
Airline transport
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land, Single-engine sea, Multi-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 1, With waivers/limitations
Last flight review
March 26, 2012
Seat
Center
Flight hours
21,000 total · 30 in this make and model · 11,000 as pilot in command · 65 in the last 90 days · 30 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
170° at 7 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
None
Temperature
82 °F, dew point 57 °F
Altimeter
30.03 inHg
Observed at
FCM

Docket · 2

The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 27, 2013, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 961 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.