- Date
- September 16, 2007, 14:00 local (19:00 UTC)
- Place
- Vernon, TX
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N729CMVans RV-7A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 20, 2007
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Fort Worth, Texas
- FAA report
- 20070916018499A
- Case key
- 66675
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 control of the airplane while landing. A contributing factor was the prevailing tailwind.
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 603-hour private pilot lost control of the homebuilt airplane while landing with a tailwind. The pilot, who was also the builder of the airplane, stated on the NTSB form 6120.1 (Pilot/Operator Accident/Incident Report) that during her first attempt to land, she "was getting strong wind gusts and about the time she flared the airplane, a strong wind gust shot me 50 feet in the air." The pilot then applied power and regained runway alignment and came around for a second landing attempt on Runway 02. The pilot reported that her second landing attempt resulted in a hard landing. When the nose gear contacted the ground the pilot encountered "a bad shimmy and when it settled I knew I did not have control of the airplane." Following the loss of control, the airplane was reported to have turned sharply to the right, nosed over and came to rest in the inverted position. The wind at the time of the mishap was reported from 200 degrees at 12 knots, gusting to 19 knots. The pilot added that she had noted during Unicom radio traffic that the landing traffic was to Runway 20 and she mistakenly landed to Runway 02.
Factual narrative
The 603-hour private pilot lost control of the homebuilt airplane while landing with a tailwind. The pilot, who was also the builder of the airplane, stated on the NTSB form 6120.1 (Pilot/Operator Accident/Incident Report) that during her first attempt to land, she "was getting strong wind gusts and about the time she flared the airplane, a strong wind gust shot me 50 feet in the air." The pilot then applied power and regained runway alignment and came around for a second landing attempt on Runway 02. The pilot reported that her second landing attempt resulted in a hard landing. When the nose gear contacted the ground the pilot encountered "a bad shimmy and when it settled I knew I did not have control of the airplane." Following the loss of control, the airplane was reported to have turned sharply to the right, nosed-over and came to rest in the inverted position. The wind at the time of the mishap was reported from 200 degrees at 12 knots, gusting to 19 knots. The pilot added that she had noted during Unicom radio traffic that the landing traffic was to Runway 20 and she mistakenly landed to Runway 02.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N729CM
- Reported as
- Vans RV-7A
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 71712
- Airframe hours
- 225
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- KBJC · Denver, CO
- Destination
- T67 · Fort Worth, TX
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- F05 · Wilbarger County Airport, runway 02, 5,099 × 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
- Pilot
- Age
- 70
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- December 1, 2005
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 603 total · 201 in this make and model · 478 as pilot in command · 18 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 200° at 12 knots, gusting 19
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 91 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.04 inHg
- Observed at
- KFDR
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.