CEN25LA024

NTSB accident investigation · Pitts S-2A · Stoughton, WI · October 19, 2024

Accident · No injuriesClass 4 · LimitedFinal report
Date
October 19, 2024, 16:30 local (21:30 UTC)
Place
Stoughton, WI
Injuries
1 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N11JCPitts S-2A
Defining event
Landing: Loss of control on ground
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed
Report
Approved by Office Director
Investigation class
Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
NTSB office
Central Region
Parties
FAA FSDO
Case key
195360

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 directional control during landing.

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.

Performance/control parameters: directional controlAircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintainedAerotek PITTS S-2A: 3 casesAll aircraft: 3,958 casesProbable cause
Wind: tailwindEnvironmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena · Effect on operationAerotek PITTS S-2A: 1 caseAll aircraft: 594 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 while performing a touch and go landing to a private turf strip and due to forward visibility limitations in the airplane, he was in a slip during approach with the left rudder applied and the right wing in a low attitude. The wind was from the southwest at 8 to 10 knots, and he maneuvered the airplane to land to the north. The pilot stated that during the touchdown, the airplane pulled to the left, and the left wing contacted tall grass on the left side of the runway, which pulled the airplane further to the left. The pilot then lost airplane control and was unable to remain on the turf strip. The airplane came to rest upright in the grass. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures that contributed to the accident, but thought the brake might have locked up during the landing. The reported brake issue could not be substantiated, and further information could not be obtained from the pilot. The pilot did not possess a rating for single-engine land airplanes but had flown 2,159 hours in single-engine airplanes and 174 hours in the accident airplane make and model. The pilot’s most recent flight review was about 5 years prior to the accident.

Aircraft

Registration
N11JC
Reported as
Pitts S-2A
Category
Airplane
Serial number
2185
Built
1978
Airframe hours
499
Engine
Lycoming AEIO-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Aerobatic
Last inspection
Annual · May 30, 2024
Airport
PVT · Private, runway 36, 2,000 × 100 ft, grass/turf
Equipment
Stall warning system

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
89
Injuries
None
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Multi-engine land
Last flight review
June 30, 2019
Seat
Rear
Restraint
4-point
Flight hours
7,354 total · 174 in this make and model · 7,354 as pilot in command · 5.8 in the last 90 days · 0.4 in the last 30 days · 0.3 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
Variable at 5 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
30,000 ft broken
Temperature
72 °F, dew point 36 °F
Altimeter
30.34 inHg
Observed at
KMSN, 13 nm away
METAR
KMSN 192053Z VRB05KT 10SM BKN300 22/02 A3034 RMK AO2 SLP275 T02220022 56016

Docket · 3

The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 20, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.1 MB in all.