Event ERA12CA502

Factual narrative

The pilot was conducting takeoffs and landings in the airport traffic pattern to familiarize himself with the tailwheel-equipped airplane, with a second pilot who did not hold a flight instructor certificate. At the suggestion of the second pilot, the pilot attempted to perform a "wheel landing," and during the landing roll, the airplane veered to the left. The pilot attempted to correct with aileron and rudder inputs, and the airplane nosed over and subsequently came to rest inverted, resulting in substantial damage to the wing spar and vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported there were no mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane, and stated that he had no prior flight experience in the accident airplane make and model. The pilot was conducting takeoffs and landings in the airport traffic pattern to familiarize himself with the tailwheel-equipped airplane. The pilot attempted to perform a "wheel landing" (touching down on the main landing gear only and gradually allowing the tailwheel to settle to the ground), and the airplane veered to the left during the landing roll. The pilot attempted to correct with aileron and rudder inputs; however, the airplane nosed over and came to rest inverted, substantially damaging both wings and the vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane, and stated that he had no prior flight experience in the accident airplane make and model. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C