LAX98LA205

NTSB accident investigation · Offord KR-2 · San Diego, CA · June 18, 1998

Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
June 18, 1998, 16:15 local (23:15 UTC)
Place
San Diego, CA
Injuries
1 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N687RLOfford KR-2
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report June 22, 2000
Report
Approved by Office Director
FAA report
19980618014249A
Case key
30126

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

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Probable cause

The pilot's failure to attain/maintain adequate airspeed during an attempted go-around.

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.

Hard landingLanding - flare/touchdown
Flare - misjudgedPilot in commandCause
Recovery from bounced landing - inadequatePilot in command
Porpoise/pilot-induced oscillation - inadvertent
Loss of control - in flightGo-around (vfr)
Go-around - attemptedPilot in command
Airspeed - not maintainedPilot in commandCause
Stall/mush - encounteredPilot in command
Dragged wing,rotor,pod,float or tail/skidGo-around (vfr)

Analysis

The pilot reported that he had been cleared to land and after touchdown the aircraft bounced twice. A go-around was initiated, the left wing dropped, and the airplane turned to the left. The pilot stated that the aircraft may have entered a partial stall. The left wing struck the runway and the aircraft cartwheeled and came to rest on its belly.

Factual narrative

On June 18, 1998, at 1615 hours Pacific daylight time, an Offord KR-2, N687RL, experimental aircraft, departed runway 27L after landing at Gillespie Field, San Diego, California. The left wing impacted the ground and the aircraft cartwheeled before coming to rest on a taxiway. The airplane, operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91, sustained substantial damage. The private pilot/owner/builder, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions existed for the personal flight that had originated from Brown field, San Diego at 1600. No flight plan was filed.

The pilot stated that he had been cleared to land on runway 27R and to report 3 miles. He was then asked to "change to [runway] 27L cleared to land 27L." Upon landing, the aircraft bounced twice and a go-around was initiated. The pilot reported that the left wing dropped, the plane turned to the left and down and may have entered a partial stall. The left wing impacted the runway; the airplane cartwheeled, and came to rest on its belly.

Approximately 1610, a pilot taxiing a Cessna 152 towards runway 27L witnessed the accident. The witness observed the KR-2 touch down onto runway 27L while simultaneously rocking from side to side. Several seconds later, he then stated that the aircraft was airborne and "barely out of ground effect" when it entered a left turn at 30 degrees of bank. He observed the aircraft swerve across the taxiway and turn left almost 90 degrees when the lower wing struck the taxiway. The aircraft contacted the ground, came to a sudden stop, and "split up into several pieces".

Aircraft

Registration
N687RL
Reported as
Offord KR-2
Category
Airplane, amateur-built
Serial number
RLO-1
Airframe hours
239
Engine
Volkswagen, 60 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Registered owner
Robert L. Offord
Airworthiness certificate
Special, Experimental (Special)
Last inspection
Annual · October 1, 1997 · 27 hours before
Departed
SDM · CA
Airport
SEE · Gillespie Field, runway 27L, 2,737 × 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
71
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land
Medical
Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
Seat
Left
Flight hours
309 total · 208 in this make and model · 268 as pilot in command · 7 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
270° at 9 knots
Visibility
30 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
None
Temperature
77 °F
Altimeter
29.00 inHg
Observed at
SEE

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.