NYC97LA188

The airplane was on final approach to the destination airport. According to the pilot, 'As I came in over the trees at the north end of the airport, I eased off on the power to almost no throttle. My plane started to settle really fast. I hit the end of the airstrip hard and I heard a snap.' The left main gear collapsed, the airplane subsequently nosed over and came to rest inverted. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical deficiencies with the airplane and that the airplane was performing 'fine.'

On September 27, 1997, at 1115 eastern daylight time, a Jackman Pitts S-1S, N4241Z, was substantially damaged during a hard landing to the Kolo Airstrip, Hammondsport, New York. The certificated private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight that originated from the Shannon Airport, Fredericksburg, Virginia, at 0700. No flight plan had been filed for the flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

In a written statement provided to the Steuben County Sheriff's Department, the pilot stated:

"As I came in over the trees at the north end of the airport, I eased off on the power to almost no throttle. My plane started to settle really fast. I hit the end of the airstrip hard and I heard a snap."

The pilot stated the airplane touched down at 90 miles per hour. He felt the airplane settling and the propeller striking the ground. The airplane subsequently nosed over and came to rest inverted facing north.

In a telephone interview, the pilot stated that there were no mechanical deficiencies with the airplane and that the airplane was performing "fine." He said the left landing gear broke at a weld. When asked if the quality of the weld played a role in the accident, the pilot said:

"No. It's an experimental airplane, I know what I'm buying."

The pilot reported 741 hours of total flight experience of which 92 hours were in the Pitts.