- Date
- March 17, 2022, 15:38 local (19:38 UTC)
- Place
- Lake City, FL
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N447PHartz Paul RV-6A
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Abnormal runway contact
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20220317003849A
- Case key
- 104819
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 improper landing flare, which resulted in overload bending of the nose landing gear leg and subsequent nose-over.
Findings · 4
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 stated he was previously aware of the nose-over issue of the various models of the aircraft, and as such was very cautious during landing. He attempted to recover after bouncing on a grass runway but on the second touchdown with aft elevator control input, the nose landing gear dug in and the airplane nosed over, which resulted in substantial damage to the rudder. He indicated that he should have done an immediate go-around as a result of the bounced landing, and not attempted to recover. According to the photographs and information provided by airplane owner/pilot, the nose gear leg was bent aft about 60° beginning about 2.25 inches from the landing gear mount. Equipment that was attached to the nose gear leg was permanently deformed. The airplane was equipped with upgraded nose gear leg and nose wheel fork that were specified by Van’s Aircraft Service Bulletin (SB) 07-11-09. Those components were designed to reduce the likelihood of fork axle-to-runway surface contact during nose gear overload conditions.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N447P
- Reported as
- Hartz Paul RV-6A (NO SERIES)
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 108
- Built
- 2004
- Airframe hours
- 37
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A2A, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Condition · November 1, 2021
- Airport
- 15FL · Canon Creek Airpark, runway 27, 2,600 × 50 ft, grass/turf
- Equipment
- Auto-pilot, Angle of attack indicator, ADS-B, Electronic primary flight display, Electronic multifunction display
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
- 84
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight engineer, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- February 11, 2020
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 5-point
- Flight hours
- 29,802 total · 11 in this make and model · 18,414 as pilot in command · 11 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 260° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 77 °F, dew point 46 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.99 inHg
- Turbulence
- Light
- Observed at
- KLCQ, 5 nm away
- METAR
- KLCQ 171935Z AUTO 26006KT 10SM CLR 25/08 A2999 RMK AO2
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 1, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 7.4 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.