- Date
- January 25, 1998, 09:55 local (16:55 UTC)
- Place
- Prescott, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N28KPitts S1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 1, 1999
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19980125000549A
- Case key
- 30024
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's failure to maintain directional control of the aircraft.
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 performed a short approach with a long landing to minimize the taxi time and to aid in the flow of traffic at the airport. He stated that as he approached the turn off to the taxiway, the nose began to drift to the right. The pilot tried to correct for the drift by first adding left rudder then by applying left brake, all to no avail. The aircraft turned off the runway and ground looped. The wind conditions at the time were calm.
Factual narrative
On January 25, 1998, at 0955 hours mountain standard time, a Pitts S1, N28K, ground looped during the landing roll at the Prescott, Arizona, airport. The aircraft sustained substantial damage, and the pilot was not injured. The aircraft departed Prescott at 0930 for a local area personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and included calm wind conditions.
The pilot stated that he performed a short approach and a long landing on runway 21L to minimize the taxi distance. As he was approaching the turn off to the taxiway, the nose started to drift right in the direction of the turn off. He said he attempted to stop the drift with left rudder, with no effect. He stated that the slow turn increased in rate and he applied left brake, but to no avail. The airplane continued it's turn to approximately 45 to 60 degrees off the runway heading, where the airplane tilted left and the left wing tip struck the ground.
A review of the pilot's flight time as shown in his report noted that he had approximately 11.5 hours of flight time in this make and model of airplane.
The special surface weather observation taken by the air traffic control tower immediately after the accident reported calm wind conditions.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N28K
- Reported as
- Pitts S1
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 1
- Airframe hours
- 313
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Bob Sweginnis
- Registered owner
- Mike Corradi & Bob Sweginnis
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 22, 1997 · 33 hours before
- Airport
- PRC · Prescott-Love Field, runway 21, 7,616 × 150 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
- 57
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 4,280 total · 12 in this make and model · 4,000 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 65 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 25 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PRC, 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.
Other investigations on N28K · 3
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.