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ERA10CA234

2010-04-16 · Lakeland, Florida, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport LAL

Current FAA registration · N148CK

Make / Model
ZENITH STOL CH 750
Year of manufacture
2010 · 0 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR 0-200-A (100 hp)
Seats / Engines
2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20100109
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A0C0A4

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's improper flare, which resulted in a nosegear collapse during landing.

Factual narrative

The pilot was landing an experimental amateur-built airplane on a 1,500-foot temporary grass runway, which was created for an annual fly-in event. During landing, he deployed 5 degrees of flaps, reduced power about 5 feet above the runway, and while attempting to flare, felt he had no elevator authority. The nosegear impacted the ground first and collapsed, and the airplane settled on its left wing tip with damage to the left wing. The pilot reported there were no mechanical problems with the airplane and that the airplane was not equipped with a stall warning device, nor was there an option to purchase and install one as a kit-item from the manufacturer. The pilot further stated that the accident landing was only the third time he had deployed the flaps for landing. A quartering headwind at 6 knots was reported about the time of the accident. The pilot was landing an experimental amateur-built airplane on a 1,500-foot temporary grass runway, which was created for an annual fly-in event. During landing, he deployed 5 degrees of flaps, reduced power about 5 feet above the runway, and while attempting to flare, felt he had no elevator authority. The nosegear impacted the ground first and collapsed, and the airplane settled on its left wing tip with damage to the left wing. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical problems with the airplane and that the airplane was not equipped with a stall warning device, nor was there an option to purchase and install one as a kit-item from the manufacturer. The pilot further stated that the accident landing was only the third time he had deployed the flaps for landing. A quartering headwind at 6 knots was reported about the time of the accident. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Incorrect action performance-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Incorrect use/operation - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2010_ERA10CA234.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall). All research papers