FTW98LA418

The 2,752 hour commercial pilot lost directional control of the single engine airplane after the nose landing gear tire made contact with the runway following a normal landing on the 80 foot wide gravel runway. The pilot reported that as soon as the nose wheel touched down, the airplane started to pull to the left and he was not able to control the airplane by applying opposite brake, rudder or nose wheel steering. Physical examination revealed that the airplane touched down left of centerline and the left wing collided with mesquite bushes alongside the left edge of the runway. The pilot stated that he suspected that the steering rod or the steering collar for the nose wheel steering had failed. The pilot stated that he was told by a person from the recovery crew that recovered the wreckage, that the steering collar rod was fractured. The nature of the fracture was not determined and the report from the recovery crew could not be confirmed due to the sale of the wreckage. The gravel on the runway was very loose and one of the pilots compared the feeling of operating the airplane in loose gravel as if the airplane was riding on ball bearings.

On September 25, 1998, at 1430 central daylight time, a Bellanca 17-30A airplane, N727DC, was substantially damaged following a loss of control while landing near Alpine, Texas. The instrument rated commercial pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was not injured. The airplane was owned and operated by the pilot under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal cross country flight that originated from Ozona, Texas, approximately 1330.

The 2,752 hours pilot reported that he entered the traffic pattern for a full stop landing on runway 20 at the Terlingua Ranch Airport (1E2), near Alpine, Texas. Following a normal touchdown, the pilot stated that as the nose wheel tire contacted the ground, the airplane "started to pull to the left to the point that he could not control the airplane with opposite brake, rudder or nose wheel steering."

The pilot added that the airplane departed the left side of the 80 foot wide gravel runway and impacted mesquite trees and rocks on the east side of the runway. The winds at the time of the accident were reported from 200 degrees at 10 knots.

Several of the pilots that attended the fly-in at the ranch reported that "the gravel on the runway was very loose." Most pilots reported that they elected to land and takeoff with the flaps retracted to avoid possible damage to the flaps due to flying rocks. One of the pilots compared the feeling of operating on loose gravel as "if the airplane was operating on ball bearings."

Examination of the airplane by the FAA inspector who responded to the accident site revealed that the right wing sustained structural damage and the right main and nose landing gear collapsed. The FAA inspector documented the airplane's tire tracks from the point of touchdown to the point where the airplane departed the runway. The inspector stated physical evidence revealed that the airplane touched down left of centerline and left wing collided with mesquite bushes alongside the left edge of the runway, which subsequently resulted in a loss of control.

On the "mechanical malfunction failure" block of the enclosed NTSB Form 6120.1/2, the pilot stated that he suspected that the steering rod or the steering collar for the nose wheel steering had failed. The pilot stated that he was told by a person from the recovery crew that recovered the wreckage, that the steering collar rod was fractured. The nature of the fracture was not determined and the report from the recovery crew could not be confirmed due to the sale of the wreckage.