- Date
- September 18, 1984, 15:15 local (20:15 UTC)
- Place
- Covington, IN
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5023DPickel Smith Miniplane
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19840918049529A
- Case key
- 12777
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 pilot stated after the accident that during the landing roll the left wheel separated from the aircraft. The aircraft slid aprx 40 feet and nosed over. The plt stated that he had removed the main landing gear aprx 10 hrs prior to the accident to repack the wheel bearings. He stated that he had trouble reinstalling the axle retaining nut so that the cotter key hole in the nut matched the one in the axle. He redrilled and enlarged the hole in the retaining nut. This allowed the cotter key to fit through the retaining nut but with the nut set at its proper torque, it did not go through the hole.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5023D
- Reported as
- Pickel Smith Miniplane (SMITH MINI)
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 7337
- Airframe hours
- 171
- Engine
- Continental C-85, 85 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Arnold F. Pickel
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 20, 1984
- Airport
- 4I5 · Fulton
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
- 46
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 528 total · 173 in this make and model · 404 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.