# NTSB CHI01LA261: McIntosh Steen Skybolt, N2261N, Lebanon, IN, July 26, 2001 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: July 26, 2001, 19:45 local (23:45 UTC) - Place: Lebanon, IN - Coordinates: 40.050598, -86.470451 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.0506&lon=-86.4705&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report November 23, 2001 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA - NTSB case key (mKey): 52950 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CHI01LA261 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/52950/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI01LA261 ## Probable cause The pilot misjudged his altitude during the landing. A factor was the soybean crop which the airplane contacted. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - In flight collision with terrain/water, landing - flare/touchdown - altitude - misjudged, pilot in command (cause) - terrain condition - crop (contributing factor) - Nose over, landing - flare/touchdown ## Analysis The airplane nosed over after colliding with a soybean crop on the left side of the runway while landing. The pilot reported that he was flying the airplane from the rear seat which limited his forward visibility of the runway so he used the following landing technique. "Make an early turn from base to final and follow a flight path that lies at an angle of 10 to 20 degrees to the runway heading until the aircraft passes over the runway edge at minimal altitude, align the aircraft with the runway heading using rudder only and promptly flare." The pilot reported that he "...misjudged his altitude and/or rate of descent and the aircraft failed to clear the soybeans growing along the left edge of the runway." He reported the left main gear contacted the soybeans and the airplane turned to an approximate 360 degree heading. The pilot applied full power in an attempt to gain altitude but "...the drag on the left wing in contact with the tops of the soybean plants prevented the building of airspeed." The pilot then reduced the throttle and the airplane settled into the soybeans and came to rest inverted. The pilot reported that he "...attributes the cause of this accident to his error in either selecting the wrong technique for final approach, or failing to maintain proper glide path to clear the crop growing at the runway edge. It is possible that the low angle of the sun and the resultant long shadow cast by the soybeans on to the runway contributed to the pilot's misjudgment of the height of the crop." ## Factual narrative On July 26, 2001, at 1945 eastern daylight time, a McIntosh Steen Skybolt, N2261N, nosed over after colliding with a soybean crop on the left side of runway 36 (private, 2,600 feet by 60 feet, grass), at the Lehrman Airfield, Lebanon, Indiana. The pilot was not injured and the airplane was substantially damaged. The 14 CFR Part 91 local flight was operating in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. The flight originated from the Lehrman Airfield at about 1900. The pilot reported that he was flying the airplane from the rear seat which limited his forward visibility of the runway so he used the following landing technique: "Make an early turn from base to final and follow a flight path that lies at an angle of 10 to 20 degrees to the runway heading until the aircraft passes over the runway edge at minimal altitude, align the aircraft with the runway heading using rudder only and promptly flare." The pilot reported that he "...misjudged his altitude and/or rate of descent and the aircraft failed to clear the soybeans growing along the left edge of the runway." He reported the left main gear contacted the soybeans and the airplane turned to an approximate 360 degree heading. The pilot applied full power in an attempt to gain altitude but "...the drag on the left wing in contact with the tops of the soybean plants prevented the building of airspeed." The pilot then reduced the throttle and the airplane settled into the soybeans and came to rest inverted. The pilot reported that he "...attributes the cause of this accident to his error in either selecting the wrong technique for final approach, or failing to maintain proper glide path to clear the crop growing at the runway edge. It is possible that the low angle of the sun and the resultant long shadow cast by the soybeans on to the runway contributed to the pilot's misjudgment of the height of the crop." ## Aircraft - Registration: [N2261N](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N2261N), registered now, S/N 001, built 1994 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: McIntosh Steen Skybolt - Registry model: [Mcintosh Verlin D STEEN SKYBOLT](https://openairdocs.org/model/mcintosh-verlin-d-steen-skybolt) (registry code 05625SB) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming IO-540 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-io-540-series) (registry code 41530, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: 001 - Airframe hours: 270 - Engines: Lycoming IO-540-D4A5 260 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Ronald L. Lehrman - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Condition, September 23, 1998 - Departed: PVT, Lebanon, IN - Destination: PVT, Lebanon - Airport: PVT, Lehrman, runway 36, 2,600 × 60 ft, grass/turf ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 51; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review March 20, 1999; seat: rear; flight hours: 1,358 total, 93 in this make and model, 1,300 as pilot in command, 18 in the last 90 days, 11 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 40° at 10 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 25,000 ft broken - Temperature: 75 °F, dew point 61 °F - Altimeter: 30.11 inHg - Observed at: IND, 24 nm away ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20010726026319A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010726026319A), Jul 26, 2001: Amtr STEENSKYBOLT, Lebanon, IN, No damage. (-23) While landing at a private airstrip, pilot mis-judged landing approach, undershot runway, aircraft veered to the left and rand into soybeans planted… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.