- Date
- April 8, 2016, 16:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- South St. Paul, MN
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N726TTL Ultralight Sro TL-3000 Sirius
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 1, 2016
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- Minneapolis FSDO (FAA)
- FAA report
- 20160408003939A
- Case key
- 93001
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 failure to maintain a proper landing flare in gusty wind conditions, which resulted in a hard landing and substantial damage to the firewall.
Findings · 3
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 reported that he encountered gusty wind conditions and a "sudden low level wind shear" during the landing flare and touched down hard. During the landing roll, the pilot noticed that he could not steer the airplane to the left, but he was able to stop the airplane on the runway. During a postaccident inspection, evidence of a propeller strike was also observed. The firewall was substantially damaged. An automated weather observing system, about the time of the accident, at the accident airport reported the wind 330 degrees true at 16 knots gusting to 28 knots. The pilot reported that he landed on runway 34. The pilot did not report any mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that he encountered gusty wind conditions and a "sudden low level wind shear" during the landing flare and touched down hard. During the landing roll, the pilot noticed that he could not steer the airplane to the left, but he was able to stop the airplane on the runway. During a postaccident inspection, evidence of a propeller strike was also observed. The firewall was substantially damaged. An automated weather observing system, about the time of the accident, at the accident airport reported the wind 330 degrees true at 16 knots gusting to 28 knots. The pilot reported that he landed on runway 34. The pilot did not report any mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N726T
- Reported as
- TL Ultralight Sro TL-3000 Sirius (NO SERIES)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 13SI77
- Built
- 2013
- Airframe hours
- 463.1
- Engine
- Rotax 912 ULS, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Air Associates of Missouri
- Registered owner
- Swan Air LLC.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Special light-sport (Special)
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · November 3, 2015
- Departed
- DBQ · Dubuque, IA
- Destination
- SGS · South St. Paul, MN
- Airport
- SGS · South St Paul Muni-Richard E F, runway 34, 4,002 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic multifunction display, Auto-pilot, Airframe parachute, ADS-B, Onboard weather, Handheld GPS, Electronic primary flight 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
- 57
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Sport Pilot
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Sport pilot
- Last flight review
- December 30, 2015
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 71.5 total · 13.6 in this make and model · 36 as pilot in command · 27 in the last 90 days · 9.1 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 330° at 16 knots, gusting 28
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 5,500 ft broken
- Temperature
- 34 °F, dew point 10 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.06 inHg
- Turbulence
- Light
- Observed at
- KSGS
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on May 18, 2016, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 628 KB 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.