LAX04CA262

The pilot encountered a tailwind during landing; the airplane overran the runway and collided with a fence. While on the final approach segment of the pilot's landing pattern, he closed the throttle. The airplane touched down about 2,000 feet down the 4,125-foot runway with a higher than normal airspeed. The pilot retracted the flaps and began to apply the brakes. The airplane skidded down the runway until impacting a fence. The pilot noted no mechanical malfunctions with the airplane prior to the accident. A preceding airplane in the pattern had advised the control tower of encountering a 10-knot tailwind. The pilot said he heard this broadcast.

On July 12, 2004, at 1712 Pacific daylight time, a Manoucher Lancair 360 MK II, N360MA, landed long and collided with a fence at the Whiteman Airport, Pacoima, California. The airplane was registered to a private company, and being operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The private pilot and one passenger were not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The pilot departed from the Agua Dulce Airpark, Agua Dulce, California, and Whiteman was his destination.

The pilot was landing on runway 12. The airplane that landed just prior to him informed the tower that they encountered a 10-knot tailwind during the landing. The pilot acknowledged that he had heard the other pilot report the tailwind condition.

While on the final approach segment of the landing pattern, the pilot closed the throttle. The airplane touched down in the first 1/3 of the runway; the pilot retracted the flaps and began to apply the brakes. The airplane did not respond as it had in the past. The pilot applied full brakes, and the airplane skidded until it impacted the fence resulting in substantial damage to the left wing. The pilot noted no mechanical malfunctions with the airplane prior to the accident.

The National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge asked the pilot why he did not initiate a go-around when he heard about the 10-knot tailwind. He stated that the approach felt normal, and not until he applied the brakes did anything feel unusual. At that point, he chose to continue the landing roll rather than go-around, because of an accident he had read about in the past that involved an unsuccessful go-around.

The airport manager reported that the pilot landed approximately 1,800 feet down the 4,125-foot runway. The skid marks down the runway were about 350 to 400 feet long.

The air traffic control tower manager said a pilot that landed just prior to the accident reported a 6- to 7-knot tailwind. The tower controller advised the accident pilot of the tailwind, but did not receive a response. While the Lancair was on final, it appeared to be going at a higher than normal airspeed. The airplane touched down about 2,000 feet down the runway.