- Date
- November 14, 1983, 15:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- St. Joseph, MO
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N53842Bellanca 7ECA
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19831114057449A
- Case key
- 33589
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 acft nosed down during landing after the left main landing gear strut failed. The plt stated that on the 2nd touch- and-go landing, he felt a vibration and saw the left gear strut trailing at about a 45 degree angle. The plt chose to land on the grass beside the rwy. On touchdown, the gear collapsed and the acft nosed down. Post accident investigation revealed that the attach bolt, Bellanca pn MS20007, had broken. The NTSB lab found that the bolt revealed features typical of high stress fatigue cracking over most of the fracture face. Two separate regions of fatigue cracking were noticeable on the fracture face.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N53842
- Reported as
- Bellanca 7ECA
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1125-75
- Airframe hours
- 576
- Engine
- Lycoming O-235-C1, 115 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Trailwinds Flying Club Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 19, 1983 · 115 hours before
- Departed
- STJ · St. Joseph, MO
- Airport
- STJ · Rosecrans Mem, runway 31, 6,000 × 100 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
- 44
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 3,100 total · 45 in this make and model · 3,000 as pilot in command · 20 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 13 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 9,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 54 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- KCI, 31 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.