Aero Design Eleven 12 N80XP

Summary

On 10 April 2000 at about 19:45 local time, a Aero Design Eleven 12 registered N80XP was involved in an accident near Spokane, Washington, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

10 April 2000 at 19:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Spokane, Washington, United States

Nearest airport

Felts Field (SFF)

Coordinates

47.6498, -117.3108

Aircraft

Aero Design Eleven 12

Registration

N80XP

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Spangle → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA00LA065

Nobody was injured.

Cracking of the weld between the tailwheel stinger housing and longitudinal cross tube, resulting in separation of the tube/tail wheel assembly from the airframe.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

While landing on runway 21R, and decelerating through about 25 miles per hour, the aircraft began to 'hunt.' In an effort to maintain directional control the pilot applied braking, however the aircraft ground-looped, coming to rest on the east side of the runway. When the pilot exited the aircraft he noted that the tail wheel assembly had separated from the airframe. Post-crash examination revealed that the tail wheel stinger sleeve, into which the stinger/tail wheel assembly bolts, had separated from the airframe at both the base of the rudder post and the lateral cross tube. Examination of the fracture surfaces of the sleeve where it attached to the lateral cross tube revealed discoloration of a portion of the tube end. The pilot/owner reported that only the top and bottom of the fish mouth joint had been welded to the tail wheel stinger tube where it attached to the lateral cross tube, and that 'failure at this joint allowed the tailwheel to break free of the airframe.'

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.