- Date
- March 15, 2003, 11:40 local (18:40 UTC)
- Place
- Englewood, CO
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N60HYAviat A-1B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 25, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA Flight Standards District Office
- FAA report
- 20030315003619A
- Case key
- 56700
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 of the airplane, resulting in an inadvertent ground loop. A contributing factor was the gusty winds.
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 student pilot made a crosswind landing on runway 35L and "encountered a gusty wind" on landing roll. He lost directional control of the airplane and it ground looped to the left. The right wing spar and right aileron were bent. In addition, the right main landing gear collapsed and the fuselage was buckled. The wind was 040 degrees at 7 knots, variable between 010 degrees and 070 degrees.
Factual narrative
On March 15, 2003, approximately 1140 mountain standard time, an Aviat A-1B, N60HY, was substantially damaged when it collided with terrain during landing roll at Centennial Airport, Englewood, Colorado. The student pilot, the sole occupant aboard, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed for the local instructional flight being conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91. The flight originated at Englewood approximately 1100.
The following is based in the pilot's accident report and corroborated by an FAA inspector. The pilot made a crosswind landing on runway 35L and "encountered a gusty wind" on landing roll. He said he lost directional control of the airplane and it ground looped to the left. The right wing spar and right aileron were bent. In addition, the right main landing gear collapsed and the fuselage was buckled.
The recorded wind at 1153 was from 040 degrees at 7 knots, variable between 010 degrees and 070 degrees.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N60HY
- Reported as
- Aviat A-1B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2186
- Airframe hours
- 84
- Engine
- Textron Lycoming O-360-A1P, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Daniel Verdoorn
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 21, 2003 · 6 hours before
- Departed
- APA · Englewood, CO
- Destination
- APA · Englewood, CO
- Airport
- APA · Centennial Airport, runway 35L, 7,400 × 100 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
- Student pilot
- Age
- 37
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Student
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 83 total · 83 in this make and model · 3 as pilot in command · 6 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 40° at 7 knots, gusting 12
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 10 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.82 inHg
- Observed at
- APA
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.