WPR12CA388

Factual narrative

The student pilot, who is also the builder and owner of the experimental amateur-built tailwheel-equipped high wing airplane, took off from his home airport, made one landing there, and then took off again to conduct some cruise performance evaluations. He then conducted one landing and takeoff at a second airport, and then practiced several takeoffs and landings at a third airport. After that, he returned for landing on runway 27 at his home airport. That runway measured 3,510 feet long by 40 feet wide. The pilot reported that the approach was normal, but the air was somewhat bumpy. The pilot said that in the flare, the airplane got a "little sideways," and the left wingtip contacted the runway. Despite the pilot's efforts to correct the situation, the airplane veered to the right, and nosed over onto its back on the grass beside the runway. The pilot was uninjured, but the airplane sustained damage to its propeller, vertical stabilizer, and rudder. The pilot did not report any mechanical malfunctions of the airplane. The automated weather observation at an airport about 13 miles west of the accident airport included winds from 320 degrees at 7 knots, and an unofficial weather station in the same town as the accident airport reported similar values. The pilot reported a total flight experience of about 42 hours, including about 32 hours in the accident airplane make and model. The student pilot, who was also the builder and owner of the experimental amateur-built, tailwheel-equipped high-wing airplane, took off from his home airport, made one landing there, and then took off again to conduct some cruise performance evaluations. He then conducted one landing and takeoff at a second airport, and then practiced several takeoffs and landings at a third airport. After that, he returned for landing on runway 27 at his home airport. The pilot reported that the approach was normal, but the air was “a bit bumpy.” The pilot said that during the flare, the airplane got a "little sideways," and the left wingtip contacted the runway. Despite the pilot's efforts to correct the situation, the airplane veered to the right and nosed over onto its back on the grass beside the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the propeller, vertical stabilizer, and rudder. The pilot did not report any mechanical malfunctions of the airplane which would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

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