- Date
- June 16, 2000, 10:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Northport, WA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N304WWSchmidt SEA REY
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 18, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000616007109A
- Case key
- 49450
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 loss of directional control due to his inadequate remedial action in correcting for engine torque during the aborted landing. Factors include trees near the area where the pilot was attempting to land.
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
During a go-around from a bounced glassy-water landing, the aircraft rolled to the left because of the force generated by the turbo-charged engine at full power. Although the pilot attempted to roll the aircraft back to a wings-level position, he collided with trees along the shoreline before he was able to stop the left turn that resulted from the torque-induced roll to the left.
Factual narrative
On June 16, 2000, approximately 1000 Pacific daylight time, an experimental Schmidt Sea Rey amphibious airplane, N304WW, collided with trees during a balked landing at Deep Lake, about eight miles southeast of Northport, Washington. The private pilot and his passenger were not injured, but the aircraft, which was owned and operated by the pilot, sustained substantial damage. The 14 CFR Part 91 personal pleasure flight, which departed a private airstrip near Northport, about 30 minutes earlier, was being operated in visual meteorological conditions. No flight plan had been filed. The ELT, which was activated by the impact, was turned off at the scene.
According to the pilot, he was trying to land on glassy water and bounced the aircraft off the surface of the lake two or three times. Because the landing was not going well, the pilot elected to do a go-around. During the go around, he added full power and the torque from the turbocharged engine began to roll the aircraft to the left. The pilot attempted to roll the aircraft back to a wings-level attitude, but it collided with trees along the shoreline before he could correct for the left turn that resulted from the torque-induced roll.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N304WW
- Reported as
- Schmidt SEA REY
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 1DK084
- Airframe hours
- 67
- Engine
- Rotax 914F, 115 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Stephen J. Schmidt
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- NONE · Northport, WA
- Destination
- NONE
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
- 59
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 4,073 total · 67 in this make and model · 4,073 as pilot in command · 25 in the last 90 days · 20 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.