Event GAA18CA039

Factual narrative

The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that, during the landing roll in gusting crosswind conditions, the right wing "suddenly" lifted and he applied right aileron to correct. He added that the control application did not correct the raised right wing and the left wing dragged on the runway, which resulted in the airplane coming to rest nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing and vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported in the National Transportation Safety Board Form 6120.1 Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report that the wind was from 020° at 6 knots, gusting 17 knots. He added that the landing was on runway 34. An automated weather observation station at the airport, about the time of the accident, reported the wind from 010° at 13 knots, gusting 17 knots. The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that, during the landing roll in gusting crosswind conditions, the right wing "suddenly" lifted, and he applied right aileron to correct. He added that the control application did not correct the raised right wing and that the left wing dragged on the runway, which resulted in the airplane nosing over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing and vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot reported in the National Transportation Safety Board Form 6120.1 Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report that the wind was from 020° at 6 knots, gusting to 17 knots. He added that the landing was on runway 34. An automated weather observation station at the airport reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 010° at 13 knots, gusting to 17 knots. 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-Lateral/bank control-Not attained/maintained - C
• — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Crosswind-Effect on operation
• — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Effect on operation