- Date
- November 7, 2023, 17:00 local (22:00 UTC)
- Place
- London, KY · London Corbin Airport (KLOV) Runway 6/24
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N2606AGaulden William D Vans RV-4
- Defining event
- Landing-aborted after touchdown: Abnormal runway contact
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Not reported
- 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
- 20231107022099A
- Case key
- 193392
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 inadvertent application of nose down pitch trim during the attempted aborted landing, which resulted in abnormal contact with the runway.
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 purchased the airplane the day prior to the accident. During the landing at the destination airport, the airplane bounced, and the pilot intended to abort the landing; however, he accidentally advanced the elevator trim lever, rather than the throttle lever (which were similarly positioned and shaped). The airplane subsequently touched down a second time nose-low, resulting in damage to the main landing gear and propeller. Several fuselage tubes were also substantially damaged during the landing. The pilot stated that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures of the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2606A
- Reported as
- Gaulden William D Vans RV-4
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 3270
- Built
- 2006
- Airframe hours
- 225
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Condition · November 4, 2023 · 5 hours before
- Departed
- KMTV · Martinsville, VA
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- LOZ · London/Corbin/Magee, runway 06/24, 5,751 × 150 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Onboard weather, Handheld GPS, Electronic flight bag or handheld device
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
- 66
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- September 4, 2023
- Seat
- Front
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 1,566 total · 5.6 in this make and model · 1,475 as pilot in command · 12 in the last 90 days · 9 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Not reported
- Wind
- 270° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.97 inHg
- Observed at
- LOZ
- METAR
- KLOZ 072153Z AUTO 27010KT 10SM CLR 23/12 A2997 RMK AO2 SLP141 T02280117
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 13, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.3 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.