Event GAA15CA246

Factual narrative

The pilot of the tailwheel equipped airplane reported that he made a wheel landing on the grass runway, and during the landing roll let the tailwheel settle to the ground. When the tailwheel touched down, the tail moved to the right and the nose of the airplane veered to the left. The airplane exited the left side of the runway and as it came to a stop it rolled to the right and the right wing and horizontal stabilizer impacted the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing, aileron, right horizontal stabilizer, elevator, and the fuselage. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot of the tailwheel equipped airplane reported that he made a wheel landing on the grass runway, and during the landing roll let the tailwheel settle to the ground. When the tailwheel touched down, the tail moved to the right and the nose of the airplane veered to the left. The airplane exited the left side of the runway and as it came to a stop it rolled to the right and the right wing and horizontal stabilizer impacted the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing, aileron, right horizontal stabilizer, elevator, and the fuselage. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine 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).

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