WPR14LA146

NTSB accident investigation · Columbia Aircraft Mfg LC42 550FG · Truckee, CA · March 21, 2014

Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal report
Date
March 21, 2014, 15:50 local (22:50 UTC)
Place
Truckee, CA
Injuries
2 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N112FPColumbia Aircraft Mfg LC42 550FG
Defining event
Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report November 3, 2014
Report
Approved by Office Director
NTSB office
Western Pacific Region
Parties
Federal Aviation Administration
FAA report
20140321002829A
Case key
88968

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 failure to maintain directional control during both the landing and the subsequent attempted go-around.

Findings · 2

NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.

Performance/control parameters: directional controlAircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintainedAll aircraft: 3,958 casesProbable cause
Use of equip/info: aircraft controlPersonnel issues › Task performance · PilotAll aircraft: 9,295 casesProbable cause

Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.

Analysis

The pilot reported that, before landing, he obtained the current weather for the destination airport, which indicated that wind was from 260 degrees at 11 knots gusting to 19 knots. The pilot entered the airport traffic pattern for runway 29 and conducted an uneventful landing. Shortly after, the airplane suddenly veered left. The pilot attempted to regain directional control by applying rudder; however, he felt that the airplane was going to tip left, so he decided to initiate a go-around. During the attempted go-around, the airplane exited the runway surface, bounced, and struck terrain adjacent to the runway. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.

Factual narrative

On March 21, 2014, about 1550 Pacific daylight time, a Columbia Aircraft MFG LC42-550FG, N112FP, sustained substantial damage during a go-around at the Truckee-Tahoe Airport (TRK), Truckee, California. The airplane was registered to Mouki Aviation LLC and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The private pilot and his pilot rated passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight. The cross-country flight originated from Palo Alto, California, about 1450, with an intended destination of TRK.In a written statement, the pilot reported that as he neared TRK, he obtained the weather at TRK from the Automated Weather Observing System (AWOS), noting the wind was from 260 degrees at 11 knots, gusting to 19 knots. The pilot entered the airport traffic pattern for runway 29, a 7,000-foot long and 100-foot wide asphalt runway. The pilot stated that he landed normally and about 8 to 10 seconds later, the airplane suddenly veered abruptly to the left towards uneven terrain. The pilot attempted to correct using rudder control, however, felt that the airplane was going to tip to the left and he decided to initiate a go-around. During the attempted go-around, the airplane exited the runway surface, bounced, and struck terrain between runway 29 and taxiway alpha. Subsequently, the airplane came to rest nose low. Examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector revealed that the fuselage was structurally damaged. No evidence of any preexisting mechanical malfunction that would preclude normal operation was found.

Aircraft

Registration
N112FP
Reported as
Columbia Aircraft Mfg LC42 550FG (550FG)
Category
Airplane
Serial number
42545
Built
2007
Airframe hours
609
Engine
Cont Motor IO-550-N, 310 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · June 23, 2013
Departed
Palo Alto, CA
Destination
TRK · Truckee, CA
Airport
TRK · Truckee-Tahoe, runway 29, 7,000 × 100 ft, asphalt

Flight crew

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

Role
Pilot
Age
56
Injuries
None
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
Last flight review
June 20, 2012
Seat
Left
Restraint
3-point
Flight hours
451 total · 9 in this make and model · 318 as pilot in command · 16 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
260° at 10 knots, gusting 17
Visibility
10 statute miles
Temperature
52 °F, dew point 25 °F
Altimeter
29.97 inHg
Observed at
KTRK

Docket · 2

The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 21, 2014, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.0 MB in all.

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.