Event GAA17CA504

Factual narrative

The pilot, who was receiving instruction, reported that during the landing roll prior to stopping, the tailwheel-equipped biplane "made a sudden move to [the] left." He added that, quick reactions by the flight instructor kept the biplane on the runway and going straight. The biplane once again under the control of the pilot, then "dropped the left wing and despite corrective inputs on the controls would not respond to further control inputs" and ground looped to the right. Subsequently, the left main landing gear collapsed and the biplane came to rest nose down on the runway. The biplane sustained substantial damage to all four wings and fuselage. The pilot reported that, "it was [his] personal contention and belief that the upper left gear failed[,] resulting in substantial damage to the [biplane] and the resultant ground loop." He added that, "[he] did not believe that this particular incident could have been prevented." A review of a video of the accident that was submitted, showed in part a loss of control early in the landing roll, followed by a subsequent loss of control and ground loop to the right. The pilot receiving instruction reported that, during the landing roll before stopping, the tailwheel-equipped biplane "made a sudden move to [the] left." He added that the flight instructor's quick reactions kept the biplane on the runway and going straight. The pilot then regained control of the biplane, and the left wing dropped and "despite corrective inputs on the controls would not respond to further control inputs," and the airplane then ground looped to the right. Subsequently, the left main landing gear collapsed, and the biplane came to rest nose down on the runway. The biplane sustained substantial damage to all four wings and fuselage. The pilot reported that "it was [his] personal contention and belief that the upper left gear failed[,] resulting in substantial damage to the [biplane] and the resultant ground loop." He added that "[he] did not believe that this particular incident could have been prevented." A review of a video of the accident showed, in part, a loss of control early in the landing roll, followed by a subsequent loss of control and ground loop to the right. 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-Student/instructed pilot - C
• C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Delayed action-Instructor/check pilot - C