SEA96LA057

The student pilot stated that while preparing to exit the runway after landing, the right wheel locked during normal brake application and the airplane subsequently nosed over when he applied left brake in an attempt to keep from ground looping. He reported that the airplane had not received an annual inspection in over 2 years. Postaccident inspection indicated that the right brake lining had debonded and wedged into the right main wheel, jamming it and preventing it from rotating. The pilot's student certificate was not signed, and his logbook contained no instructor endorsements for solo privileges.

On February 13, 1996, approximately 0930 Pacific standard time, a Luscombe 8A, N71836, received substantial damage when it nosed over following a brake malfunction on landing roll at Pierce County-Thun Field, Puyallup, Washington. The student pilot, who was the sole occupant and a co-owner of the aircraft, stated on his NTSB accident report that he was not injured in the accident. The flight had departed a private airstrip at Elbe, Washington, for Puyallup. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed.

The accident was not reported to the FAA before the airplane was moved to the pilot's property at Elbe, Washington, for repairs. The FAA was made aware of the accident by an "anonymous tip" about 4 days after the accident. The FAA inspector reported that the airplane was partially disassembled at the time he examined it at Elbe. The FAA inspector reported that the rear pad of the right brake was off its shoe and lodged in the right wheel, preventing the right wheel from moving. He stated that the pilot told him that on landing roll, the right brake locked up; and that he applied left brake to keep from ground-looping, at which point the airplane nosed over. The FAA inspector also reported that the pilot's student certificate did not contain a signature, that the pilot's logbook did not contain a solo endorsement, and that the airplane did not have a current annual inspection. A computer record inquiry to the FAA Airman Certification Branch in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma indicated that the pilot possessed a student pilot certificate with an issue date of May 11, 1994 (the same as his medical certificate) and an expiration date of May 31, 1996.

On his NTSB accident report, the pilot stated: "Upon successfully completing my landing...I was preparing to exit the runway....As I applied normal braking pressure, the right side wheel immediately locked. I applied the necessary braking to the left to avoid ground looping. The tail of my aircraft raised, slowly, at which point the nose contacted the asphalt. The aircraft slowly went over onto its back....Pulling the wheel apart to assess what had caused the wheel to lock, it was discovered that the brake lining (bonded, not riveted) had debonded and had wedged itself into the wheel." The pilot characterized the damage to the airplane as minor, but stated on the report that the damage included wrinkling the top 2 to 3 inches of the vertical fin and rudder.

The pilot indicated on the NTSB accident report that the airplane's last annual inspection was on September 1, 1993, and that the airplane had flown 186 hours since this inspection.