- Date
- April 3, 2012, 19:37 local (23:37 UTC)
- Place
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N71479Luscombe 8A
- Defining event
- Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 13, 2012
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20120403011799A
- Case key
- 83296
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 loss of directional control during the landing roll, which resulted in a runway excursion.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot was landing the tailwheel-equipped airplane at the conclusion of a cross-country flight. He reported that he applied the left brake during the landing roll, and the airplane veered off the left side of the runway and traveled down an embankment, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing and right elevator. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane.
Factual narrative
The pilot was landing the tailwheel-equipped airplane at the conclusion of a cross-country flight. He stated to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector that he applied left brake during the landing roll and the airplane veered off the left side of the runway and traveled down an embankment, resulting in substantial damage to the right wing and right elevator. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N71479
- Reported as
- Luscombe 8A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2906
- Airframe hours
- 2,021
- Engine
- Cont Motor C90 SERIES, 95 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Paul Taylor
- Registered owner
- Paul Taylor
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 17, 2010
- Departed
- HKY · Hickory, NC
- Destination
- 9G1 · Pittsburgh, PA
- Airport
- 9G1 · Rock Airport, runway 35, 3,550 × 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
- 90
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 29,500 total · 35 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 27 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.82 inHg
- Observed at
- BTP, 12 nm away
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 12, 2012, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.9 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.