Event ERA13CA206

Factual narrative

According to the pilot, the airplane had about 9 total flight hours. He performed a touch-and-go landing and during departure the flaps would not retract. During the first attempt to land, the airplane was not in a position to land and a go-around was conducted. On the second attempt to land he began a straight-in approach about 3 miles from the runway since the flaps would not retract. On touchdown, the airplane's nose impacted the runway and the nose gear collapsed. As the airplane slowed, the pilot elected to exit the side of the paved surface into the grass, in order to avoid closing the runway. Subsequently, the nose gear dug into the soft terrain, the airplane nosed over, and came to rest inverted, which resulted in substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer and rudder. Examination of the flap system revealed a blown fuse, no other preimpact malfunction or abnormality was found that would have precluded normal operation. According to the pilot, the airplane had about 9 total flight hours. He performed a touch-and-go landing, and during the departure, the flaps would not retract. During the next attempt to land, the airplane was not positioned properly, so the pilot performed a go-around. On the following attempt to land, the pilot began a straight-in approach about 3 miles from the runway. On touchdown, the airplane's nose impacted the runway and the nose gear collapsed. As the airplane slowed, the pilot intentionally veered the airplane into the grass next to the runway to avoid remaining on, and thus closing, the runway. The nose gear dug into the soft terrain, and the airplane nosed over and came to rest inverted, which resulted in substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer and rudder. Examination of the flap system revealed a blown fuse; no other preimpact malfunction or abnormality was found that would have precluded normal operation. 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).

• — Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Flight control system-TE flap control system-Malfunction
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Capability exceeded - C
• C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Pilot - C
• — Environmental issues-Physical environment-Terrain-Wet/muddy-Not specified