Hulliberger STARDUSTER II N939H

Summary

On 27 June 1997 at about 00:48 local time, a Hulliberger STARDUSTER II registered N939H was involved in an accident near Berrien Springs, Michigan, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

27 June 1997 at 00:48

Classification

Accident

Location

Berrien Springs, Michigan, United States

Nearest airport

Andrews University (C20)

Coordinates

41.9400, -86.3405

Aircraft

Hulliberger STARDUSTER II

Registration

N939H

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI97LA186

1 person had minor injuries.

the failure of the landing gear axle due to fatigue.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot in command reported that after an hour long local flight he was returning to make a full stop landing on runway 30. The pilot reported that the touchdown was, 'very smooth and normal, with the power at idle.' The pilot stated that during the landing rollout, 'the aircraft pitched forward and then rotated violently to the left.' The pilot reported that during the left rotation, 'the airplane rolled up onto both right wingtips, and then fell vertically onto its nose.' The airplane came to rest in a nose down attitude, supported by the left wing and right main gear. The left main landing gear axle and support tube were sent to the National Transportation Safety Board Materials Laboratory Division for inspection. The lab report states there was evidence 'indicative of a preexisting brittle fracture area such as fatigue cracking.' The inspection also revealed thinned areas of the tube.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.