- Date
- July 25, 2003, 19:50 local (Jul 26, 2003, 00:50 UTC)
- Place
- Fulton, KY
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4103XAero Commander 100
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 25, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20030726020669A
- Case key
- 57566
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 malfunction of the brake system and the pilot's delay in aborting the landing.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
According to the pilot, he departed on a local flight to another airport. At that airport, the pilot performed a "touch-and-go" landing and did not use the brakes. Upon returning to first airport, the pilot landed normally, except that when he applied the brakes, they did not work. The pilot attempted to abort the landing and applied full power. The airplane departed the end of the runway and impacted a ravine. Upon impact, the airplane "flipped on it's back." Due to the fact that the airplane had sustained significant impact damage, and had been moved from the accident site prior to examination, it could not determine if or how the brakes failed.
Factual narrative
On July 25, 2003, about 1950 central daylight time, an Aero-Commander 100, N4103X, was destroyed when it impacted a ravine and nosed over during an aborted landing at Fulton Airport (1M7), Fulton, Kentucky. The certificated private pilot received minor injuries and the passenger was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and the airplane was not operating on a flight plan. The local personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
According to the pilot, during the taxi and engine run-up the brakes were working properly. About 1900, he departed Fulton Airport for Everett-Stewart Airport (UCY), Union City, Tennessee. At Union City, the pilot performed a "touch-and-go" landing but did not use the brakes. Upon returning to Fulton, the pilot landed normally on runway 27, except that "the aircraft seemed to not want to settle to the runway." When the pilot applied the brakes, they did not work. The pilot also tried pumping the brakes to no avail. The pilot attempted to abort the landing and applied full power. The airplane departed the end of the runway and impacted a ravine. Upon impact, the airplane "flipped on it's back." The pilot unlatched his passenger's seatbelt and they both exited the airplane.
Two Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors examined the airplane after it had been removed from the accident site. The inspectors noted that one of the brake's disc pads was missing, and was never located. Due to the fact that the airplane had sustained significant impact damage, and had been moved from the accident site, they could not determine if or how the brakes failed. A review of the airplane's maintenance history revealed no discrepancies or recent work to the breaks.
Runway 27 at Fulton Airport was an asphalt runway 2,700 feet long and 60 feet wide.
According to the pilot, the winds at the time of the accident were calm.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4103X
- Reported as
- Aero Commander 100
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 162
- Airframe hours
- 2,112.64
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320 A2B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 16, 2003 · 6.6 hours before
- Departed
- UCY · Union City, TN
- Destination
- 1M7 · Fulton, KY
- Airport
- 1M7 · Fulton Airport, runway 27, 2,700 × 60 ft, asphalt
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
- 67
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- April 23, 2003
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 661 total · 589 in this make and model · 648 as pilot in command · 12 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 75 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.