- Date
- November 17, 2024, 13:20 local (18:20 UTC)
- Place
- Plant City, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N72WJJolly Warren T Bakeng Duce
- Defining event
- Landing: Landing gear collapse
- 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
- 20241117018459A
- Case key
- 195530
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
Failure of the right main landing gear attachment bolt and hold-down nut, resulting in the right main landing gear collapsing.
Findings · 1
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
While performing a touch-and-go, the pilot stated that he was applying power for his go-around when the right wing started “dropping” and the airplane ground looped, coming to a stop facing west. The pilot commented that he looked straight ahead and saw his right main landing gear laying on the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the main landing gear mounting plate, lower wing strut attach fitting, and surrounding structure. Postaccident inspection revealed that the right inboard mounting bolt and the right outboard forward landing gear strut attachment bracket bolt hold-down nut failed. Subsequently, the hold-down bracket bent, and the right main landing gear separated from the fuselage upon landing..
Aircraft
- Registration
- N72WJ
- Reported as
- Jolly Warren T Bakeng Duce
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 72
- Built
- 1988
- Airframe hours
- 205.1
- Engine
- Lycoming O-290-D2, 140 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Condition · June 7, 2024
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- PCM · Plant City, runway 10, 3,950 × 75 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Unknown
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
- 81
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- BasicMed, Unknown
- Last flight review
- April 19, 2024
- Seat
- Rear
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 3,000 total · 20.8 in this make and model · 3,000 as pilot in command · 16.6 in the last 90 days · 3.8 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 60° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,800 ft broken
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.10 inHg
- Observed at
- PCM
- METAR
- KPCM 171815Z AUTO 06007KT 10SM BKN048 27/14 A3010 RMK AO2
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 22, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 5.8 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.
Other investigations on N72WJ · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.