- Date
- March 17, 2000, 09:40 local (14:40 UTC)
- Place
- Merritt Island, FL
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N6030TAeronca-Bubeck Irving BUBECK-AERONCA
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 29, 2000
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000317023499A
- Case key
- 48796
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 flight instructors inadequate supervision of the dual student resulting in the student pushing forward on the control stick during a bounced landing until the aircraft impacted the runway, bounced, landed hard, and broke the main landing gear.
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
While the dual student was making a wheel landing, the aircraft bounced. The flight instructor applied full engine power for a go-around. The dual student pushed forward on the control stick at the same time. Before the flight instructor could take control, the aircraft impacted nose first on the runway. The aircraft bounced and touched down again, hard, breaking off the landing gear.
Factual narrative
On March 17, 2000, about 0940 eastern standard time, an Aeronca/Bubeck, Bubeck-Aeronca, N6030T, registered to a private owner, crashed during landing at Merritt Island Airport, Merritt Island, Florida, while on a Title 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed. The aircraft received substantial damage. The commercial-rated flight instructor received minor injuries and the private-rated dual student was not injured. The flight last departed Merritt Island, Florida about 5 minutes before the accident.
The flight instructor stated that he had demonstrated a wheel landing to the dual student. He then had the dual student attempt a wheel landing. As the student landed, the aircraft touched down and bounced into the air. The flight instructor applied engine power for a go-around. At the same time the student pushed forward on the control stick. The instructor could not take control before the aircraft impact the runway nose first. The aircraft again bounced into the air and landed again, hard, breaking off the main landing gear.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6030T
- Reported as
- Aeronca-Bubeck Irving BUBECK-AERONCA (BUBECK-AER)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- IRV1997
- Airframe hours
- 298
- Engine
- Continental A65-A, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Merritt Island Air Service
- Registered owner
- Irving A. Bubeck
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · October 22, 1999 · 99 hours before
- Departed
- COI
- Airport
- COI · Merritt Island, runway 29, 3,601 × 75 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
- 48
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 1,274 total · 116 in this make and model · 1,120 as pilot in command · 104 in the last 90 days · 42 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- COF, 7 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 N6030T · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.