Event WPR13CA220

Factual narrative

The flight instructor and the private pilot were performing practice takeoff and landings in the amateur-built experimental airplane, in order to have the pilot provide an assessment of the airplane's handling qualities. The flight instructor reported that he had the pilot make a normal approach with full flaps, and the pilot made a "good landing with a normal touchdown." The pilot then commented that "It's skittish alright," and the airplane began to enter a ground loop. The flight instructor took over the controls, but the airplane exited the runway, continued through at least a portion of the ground loop, and dragged the right wingtip on the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to some right wing ribs and the right aileron. The flight instructor reported that the air traffic control tower stated that the wind was "light and variable at 4 knots" about that time. The pilot reported that this was his first flight in the accident airplane make and model. Neither the flight instructor nor the pilot reported a preimpact mechanical malfunction or failure with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The flight instructor and the private pilot were performing practice takeoff and landings in the amateur-built experimental airplane so the pilot could provide an assessment of the airplane's handling qualities. The flight instructor reported that the pilot made a normal approach with full flaps and that the pilot made a "good landing with a normal touchdown." The pilot then commented that "it's skittish alright," and the airplane began to enter a ground loop. The flight instructor took over the controls, but the airplane exited the runway, continued through at least a portion of the ground loop, and dragged the right wingtip on the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to some right wing ribs and the right aileron. The flight instructor reported that the tower air traffic controller stated that the wind was "light and variable at 4 knots" about that time. The pilot reported that this was his first flight in the accident airplane make and model. Neither the flight instructor nor the pilot reported any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures 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
• F Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Delayed action-Instructor/check pilot - F