- Date
- May 26, 1994, 15:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- La Moure, ND
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5277Grumman G-164-A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 12, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19940526012619A
- Case key
- 9354
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
failure of the pilot to maintain directional control.
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 made a wheel landing, and held the tailwheel off of the runway as long as possible. When the tailwheel contacted the runway the pilot lost directional control and ground-looped. Examination of the airplane revealed no control or tailwheel discrepancies.
Factual narrative
On May 26, 1994, at 1530 central daylight time, a Grumman Agcat G-164-A, operated by Robert's Aerial Service, Inc., sustained substantial damage when it ground looped during landing roll at La Moure Rott Municipal Airport, La Moure, North Dakota. The commercial pilot was not injured. No flight plan was filed for the aerial application flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time.
The pilot reported he had made a wheel landing, as the tailwheel touched down it started spinning and shimmying to the point where he lost directional control.
On site inspection of the tailwheel assembly did not reveal any defects. It was not loose or worn and was properly attached. The left landing gear had been severed from the aircraft, damage had been sustained to both sets of wings, the propeller had been bent.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5277
- Reported as
- Grumman G-164-A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 566
- Airframe hours
- 4,803
- Engine
- P&W R-985, 450 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Robert'S Aerial Service, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Stegeman, Richard A.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Provisional (Special); Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 23, 1994 · 8 hours before
- Airport
- ND29 · La Moure Rott Muni, runway 34, 3,750 × 43 ft, asphalt
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
- 25
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Invalid Medical for flight
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 1,100 total · 105 in this make and model · 900 as pilot in command · 120 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 280° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- JMS, 39 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 N5277 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.