# NTSB LAX05LA154: Kittleson Quickie Q-200, N200AL, Santa Barbara, CA, May 1, 2005 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 1, 2005, 14:00 local (21:00 UTC) - Place: Santa Barbara, CA - Coordinates: 34.426666, -119.844444 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.4267&lon=-119.8444&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report August 29, 2006 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 61407 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX05LA154 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/61407/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX05LA154 ## Probable cause the pilot's inadequate compensation for the crosswind condition and failure to maintain directional control. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - weather condition - crosswind - compensation for wind conditions - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - directional control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - ground loop/swerve - not corrected, pilot in command - Nose down, landing - roll - terrain condition - grass ## Analysis On the landing rollout, the airplane veered off the runway into the grass median and the airplane came up on its nose; when the airplane fell back onto its landing gear, the tail cone was damaged forward of the vertical stabilizer attachment. The pilot said he made a steeper than normal approach in an almost direct 12-knot crosswind that resulted in a higher ground speed during the landing and landing rollout than he was accustomed to. The pilot attributed his uncoordinated approach and landing to unfamiliarity with the airport, landing with a more aft center of gravity, accepting a landing clearance that resulted in a crosswind landing, and a loose tail wheel. ## Factual narrative On May 1, 2005, about 1400 Pacific daylight time, an experimental Kittleson Quickie Q-200, N200AL, departed runway 15 on the landing rollout, came up on its nose, and then came to rest on its main landing gear at Santa Barbara Municipal Airport (SBA), Santa Barbara, California. The pilot operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The private pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage. The cross-country personal flight departed Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport (IFP), Bullhead City, Arizona, about 1050 mountain standard time, with a planned destination of SBA. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The pilot submitted a written report. The pilot reported that he was cleared to land runway 15L at Santa Barbara, and the reported winds were from 230 degrees at 12 knots. He was unfamiliar with the airport and made a steeper approach than he normally would to compensate for his unfamiliarity and buildings on the approach end. The pilot stated that he lost directional control on the landing rollout due to a faster than normal landing ground speed. The airplane skidded sideways off to the left side of the runway into a grass median where it came to a sudden stop and came up on its nose. The airplane then fell back onto its main landing gear, and the tailcone was damaged forward of the vertical stabilizer attachment. According to the pilot, the area that was damaged in the accident, forward of the vertical stabilizer attachment, had been identified as a structural weak point by the kit manufacturer. The pilot reported that he landed with a 75-percent aft center of gravity, which he was unaccustomed to. He normally landed at a 50-percent forward center of gravity. The pilot further indicated that on the landing rollout he felt a "wobble" in the tailwheel. When he inspected the tailwheel area, he found a "loosening of the channel in which the bolt that secures the tailwheel on the tail spring travels." The pilot indicated that with a loose tailwheel there would be a reduction in controllability during a high-speed taxi. The pilot attributed the accident to three areas: 1. Landing in a gusty crosswind condition 2. Landing with a more aft center of gravity than he was accustomed. 3. Wobble in the tailwheel. In the section of NTSB Form 6120.1/2 entitled RECOMMENDATION (HOW COULD THIS ACCIDENT HAVE BEEN PREVENTED), the pilot wrote: "reduced acceptable crosswind component when tail dragger aircraft is loaded to CG in rear 1/2 of envelope." ## Aircraft - Registration: [N200AL](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N200AL), registered now, S/N 2653, built 1997 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Kittleson Quickie Q-200 - Registry model: [Kittleson Allen F QUICKIE Q200](https://openairdocs.org/model/kittleson-allen-f-quickie-q200) (registry code 05630FU) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental 0-200 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-0-200-series) (registry code 17020, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: 2653 - Airframe hours: 201 - Engines: Continental O-200-A 100 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Geoffrey W. Rutledge - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Condition, March 1, 2005, 28 hours before - Departed: IFP, Bullhead City, AZ - Destination: SBA, Santa Barbara, CA - Airport: KSBA, Santa Barbara, runway 15L, 4,179 × 75 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 50; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, with waivers/limitations; last flight review October 1, 2003; seat: left; flight hours: 268 total, 91 in this make and model, 256 as pilot in command, 32 in the last 90 days, 25 in the last 30 days, 2 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 270° at 12 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 68 °F, dew point 54 °F - Altimeter: 30.04 inHg - Observed at: SBA ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20050501008329A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20050501008329A), May 1, 2005: Amtr Q200, Santa Barbara, CA, Substantial damage. (-23) Pilot lost directional control during landing. During excursion off runway, aircraft nosed up onto the propeller, then fell back to ground. Composite… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.