- Date
- July 8, 2000, 10:00 local (16:00 UTC)
- Place
- Erie, CO
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4785FPiper PA-18-150
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 2, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000708010469A
- Case key
- 49644
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
Aircraft control was not possible by the flight instructor due to the inadequate maintenance adjustment of the tail wheel steering system by maintenance personnel. Factors were the inadequate aircraft preflight by the second pilot who was receiving a recurrency check ride, and the inadequate supervision, of the second pilot who was performing the preflight, by the flight instructor.
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 receiving instruction performed a three-point landing, and the airplane bounced. The airplane immediately veered to the right following the second touchdown. The flight instructor took control of the airplane and applied full left rudder; the airplane exited the right side of the runway and ground looped. Postaccident examination of the tail wheel steering assembly revealed that the two chains/springs that controlled the tail wheel steering had an estimated 1 1/2 inches of slack in them. The steering chain was being held together by a 'carabiner.' A maintenance person said that the chains and springs connected to the tail wheel steering assembly 'should be tight enough to give the pilot positive steering control.' The maintenance records indicate that the airplane had accumulated approximately 4 flight hours since major rebuild.
Factual narrative
On July 8, 2000, approximately 1000 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-18-150 (Super Cub), N4785F, was substantially damaged during landing at Tri-County Airport, Erie, Colorado. The flight instructor and pilot receiving instruction were not injured. The airplane was being operated by the Soaring Society of Boulder, Inc., under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the instructional flight that originated from Boulder, Colorado, approximately 30 minutes before the accident. No flight plan had been filed.
The flight instructor said that the purpose for the flight was a currency check ride for a qualified tow pilot. He said the pilot receiving instruction performed a three-point landing, and the airplane bounced. The airplane immediately veered to the right following the second touchdown. The flight instructor took control of the airplane and applied full left rudder. The airplane subsequently exited the right side of the runway and ground looped. The main spar on the left wing was bent up.
Postaccident examination, by the NTSB Investigator-In-Charge, of the tail wheel steering assembly revealed that the two chains/springs that controlled the tail wheel steering had an estimated 1 1/2 inches of slack in them. He also found that the chain was being held together by a "carabiner." A maintenance person said that the chains and springs connected to the tail wheel steering assembly "should be tight enough to give the pilot positive steering control."
The maintenance records indicate that the airplane had accumulated approximately 4 flight hours since major rebuild.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4785F
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-7906
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A3A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Soaring Society Of Boulder
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 15, 2000
- Departed
- 1V5 · Boulder, CO
- Destination
- 48V
- Airport
- 48V · Tri-County Airport, runway 15, 4,700 × 60 ft, concrete
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
- 51
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Unknown
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 2,500 total · 300 in this make and model · 2,350 as pilot in command · 120 in the last 90 days · 40 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 290° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 80 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 91 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- BJC, 7 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 N4785F · 3
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.