- Date
- June 7, 1997, 08:10 local (15:10 UTC)
- Place
- Lemoore, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N450MFBoeing Stearman A75N1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 21, 1998
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970607013599A
- Case key
- 29805
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
failure of the pilot to maintain directional control of the airplane during the landing, which resulted in a ground swerve and subsequent overload failure of the main landing gear. Related factors were a left crosswind and partial loss of the right wheel brake.
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
The pilot stated that he was unable to control a sudden swerve to the left during the landing rollout, so he added full power to go around. The power application torqued the airplane into a fully developed ground loop from which it came to rest after approximately 135 degrees of turn. During the turn, both main gear collapsed, allowing the propeller to contact the runway surface. The pilot also stated that the right brake faded during the landing rollout, and he felt that this contributed to his inability to control the initial swerve.
Factual narrative
On June 7, 1997, at 0810 hours Pacific daylight time, a Boeing Stearman A75N1, N450MF, was substantially damaged when it ground looped during landing at Lemoore Naval Air Station, Lemoore, California. There was no injury to the solo commercial pilot. The flight departed Hanford, California, at 0750 with visual meteorological conditions prevailing for the personal flight.
The pilot stated that, during the landing rollout, the airplane started a swerve to the left so he added full power to go around. The power application torqued the airplane into a fully developed ground loop from which it came to rest after approximately 135 degrees of turn. During the turn, both main gear collapsed, allowing the propeller to strike the runway surface several times. The pilot also stated that the right brake faded during the landing rollout and he felt that this contributed to the inability to control the initial swerve.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N450MF
- Reported as
- Boeing Stearman A75N1
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 75-6618
- Engine
- P&W R-985-AN-1, 450 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Ronald A. Caraway
- Registered owner
- Stearman Restorations Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Standard, Aerobatic
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 10, 1996 · 120 hours before
- Departed
- 018 · Hanford, CA
- Destination
- NLC · CA
- Airport
- NLC · Nas Lemoore/Reeves, runway 26L, 13,500 × 150 ft, concrete
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
- 60
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 4,712 total · 129 in this make and model · 4,554 as pilot in command · 38 in the last 90 days · 12 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 20° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 3 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- NLC, 1 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.