- Date
- January 4, 2026, 16:30 local (22:30 UTC)
- Place
- Sealy, TX
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N8877DPiper PA-22-160
- Defining event
- Landing: Landing gear collapse
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 14, 2026
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration, Houston FSDO
- FAA report
- 20260104003139A
- Case key
- 202252
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 failure of the nose wheel during landing that resulted in a loss of directional control and impact with terrain.
Findings · 1
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 and flight instructor departed from a grass airstrip and performed flight training maneuvers in the local area prior to returning to the airstrip. During the landing to the airstrip with no wind present, the airplane nose wheel turned right, and it did not respond to control inputs. The airplane departed the runway surface and impacted terrain. The airplane came to rest in a nose-down attitude on a grass field near the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing, and the nose wheel was found collapsed. The flight instructor stated that the nose wheel had failed during the landing, and it did not respond to rudder inputs.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8877D
- Reported as
- Piper PA-22-160
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 22-6051
- Built
- 1958
- Airframe hours
- 2,942.81
- Engine
- Lycoming Engines O320-B2A, 110 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 23, 2025
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- 1XA7 · Gloster Aerodrome, runway 20, 3,400 × 90 ft, grass/turf
- Equipment
- ADS-B
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 68
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Foreign, Airline transport, Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Sport pilot
- Last flight review
- June 19, 2025
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 5,500 total · 30 in this make and model · 5,400 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 54
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Medical
- Sport pilot
- Last flight review
- January 4, 2026
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 205 total · 13 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 230° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 50 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.06 inHg
- Observed at
- TME, 8 nm away
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on May 14, 2026, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 9.8 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.