- Date
- May 29, 2003, 12:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Seneca, KS
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N29SKGrumman G-164A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 30, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA - Wichita FSDO
- FAA report
- 20030529011649A
- Case key
- 57114
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 while landing. Factors contributing to the accident were the collapse of the left main landing gear strut and the ditch.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The airplane sustained substantial damage when the left main landing gear collapsed and it impacted a ditch during landing. The pilot reported the airplane turned abruptly to the right after touchdown. The pilot stated he applied left rudder to gain control of the airplane and the airplane slid sideways down the runway. The left main landing gear strut collapsed, the left wing struck the runway, and the airplane slid into a ditch. An on-scene inspection of the airplane showed no anomalies in the main landing gear brakes or brake assemblies. The right main landing gear strut was intact.
Factual narrative
On May 29, 2003, at 1200 central daylight time, a Grumman G-164A, N29SK, operated by Nemaha Valley Aerial Inc., sustained substantial damage during a loss of directional control while landing at a private airstrip near Seneca, Kansas. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The commercial pilot reported no injuries. The 14 CFR Part 137 aerial application flight was not operating on a flight plan. The local flight departed at an unconfirmed time.
The pilot reported he applied brakes after touching down and the airplane made an "unwarranted and abrupt 90-degree turn to the right." The pilot stated he applied left rudder to gain control of the airplane and the airplane slid sideways down the runway. The left main landing gear strut collapsed and the wing impacted the runway. The airplane subsequently impacted a ditch and came to a stop.
A Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness inspector conducted an on-scene examination of the airplane. The examination showed no anomalies in the main landing gear brakes or brake assemblies. The right main landing gear strut was intact.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N29SK
- Reported as
- Grumman G-164A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1354
- Engine
- Pratt & Whitney R-1340, 600 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Nemaha Valley Aerial
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Departed
- PVT · Seneca, KS
- Airport
- PVT · Private, runway 36, 2,200 × 100 ft, grass/turf
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
- 24
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- January 5, 2003
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 2,800 total · 1,900 in this make and model · 2,635 as pilot in command · 150 in the last 90 days · 50 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 46 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.96 inHg
- Observed at
- KFNB, 27 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.
Other investigations on N29SK · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.