- Date
- October 29, 2019, 09:30 local (16:30 UTC)
- Place
- Albuquerque, NM
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3016ACessna 170
- Defining event
- Landing: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 16, 2020
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20191029022199A
- Case key
- 100589
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 receiving instruction's failure to maintain directional control and his inadvertent left brake pedal application during the landing roll, which resulted in a runway excursion and ground-loop.
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 receiving instruction for his tailwheel endorsement reported that he and the flight instructor were performing touch-and-go landings on the asphalt surface runway. The airplane was equipped with toe brakes, and after landing, he added power to abort the landing and applied right rudder as the airspeed accelerated to 30 knots. He recalled that he held the right rudder pedal application "too long" and that the airplane veered right. He attempted to correct the right veer by applying left rudder but overcorrected, and the instructor took the controls and applied full deflection of the right rudder. The airplane did not respond to the instructor's right rudder input, and he then applied left aileron. The pilot kept his feet on the pedals and inadvertently applied left brake. The airplane was side loaded to the right, and the right wing struck the ground. The instructor held his control inputs to direct the airplane to the right, but the right wing struck the ground again before the airplane exited the left side of the runway. The wheels dug into dirt on the left side of the runway, the elevator struck the ground, and the right wing struck the ground a third time before the airplane came to rest upright. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing and right elevator. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
The pilot receiving instruction for his tailwheel endorsement reported that, he and the instructor were performing touch-and-go landings and takeoffs on the asphalt surface runway. The airplane was equipped with toe brakes, and after landing, he added power to abort the landing, and also applied right rudder as the airspeed accelerated to 30 knots. He recalled that he held the right rudder pedal application "too long" and the airplane veered to the right. He corrected the right veer by applying left rudder but overcorrected and the flight instructor came on the controls and applied full deflection of the right rudder. The airplane did not respond to the instructor's right rudder input, and he applied left aileron. The pilot receiving instruction kept his feet on the pedals and inadvertently applied left brake. The airplane was side loaded to the right, and the right wing struck the ground. The instructor held his control inputs to direct the airplane to the right, but the right wing struck the ground a second time prior to exiting the left side of the runway. The airplane's heading was about 60° to the left of the runway heading, and the wheels dug into the dirt on the left side of the runway and the elevator struck the ground, and the right wing struck the ground a third time before the airplane came to rest upright. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing, and the right elevator. Additionally, the pilot receiving instruction was the owner of the airplane, and reported that he, "had installed removable 1 (inch) blocks on the lower portion of the rudder/brake pedals to reduce the required ankle deflection and allow for applying rudder controls with less likelihood of simultaneously applying brake inputs." The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3016A
- Reported as
- Cessna 170 (B)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 25660
- Built
- 1953
- Airframe hours
- 3,901.5
- Engine
- Continental C145-2H, 145 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Perry Aeronautical Services Llc
- Registered owner
- Perry Aeronautical Services Llc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Unknown · February 27, 2019
- Departed
- AEG · Albuquerque, NM
- Destination
- AEG · Albuquerque, NM
- Airport
- AEG · Double Eagle Ii, runway 22, 7,398 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Handheld GPS, Onboard weather, Stall warning system, ADS-B
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 73
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Private, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- August 13, 2019
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 7,041 total · 589 in this make and model · 6,220 as pilot in command · 67.5 in the last 90 days · 12.3 in the last 30 days · 1.2 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 67
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- BasicMed
- Last flight review
- June 7, 2019
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 753 total · 2.9 in this make and model · 657 as pilot in command · 25.3 in the last 90 days · 6.1 in the last 30 days · 1.3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 21 °F, dew point 9 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.96 inHg
- Observed at
- KAEG
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 30, 2020, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 5.0 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 N3016A · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.