Event GAA20CA069

Factual narrative

The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that, during takeoff, he turned the yoke to the right into the perceived quartering headwind. The tail lifted, the right wing dipped, he corrected by trying to lift off, but the right wheel remained on the ground. The airplane ground looped, exited the runway to the left, and nosed over. He further added that, while taking off, he misread the windsock and applied the wrong wind correction. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing and vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The airport's automated weather observation station reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 010° at 9 knots. The airplane was departing from runway 13. The pilot reported that, during takeoff, he turned the yoke to the right into the perceived quartering headwind. The tail lifted, and the right wing dipped, and he corrected by trying to lift off, but the right wheel remained on the ground. The airplane ground looped, exited the runway to the left, and nosed over. He added further that, while taking off, he misread the windsock and applied the wrong wind correction. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing and vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane 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 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
• C Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Tailwind-Effect on operation - C