Aviation Crash Map

Extra Flugzeugbau EA300/L N272X

4 May 2008 · Great Falls, Montana, United States · No injuries

Summary

On 4 May 2008 at about 01:50 local time, a Extra Flugzeugbau EA300/L registered N272X, operated by David I Heaps, was involved in an accident near Great Falls, Montana, United States. 2 people were 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.

The record

Date
at 01:50
Classification
Accident
Location
Great Falls, Montana, United States
Nearest airport
Great Falls International Airp (KGTF)
Coordinates
47.4825, -111.3706
Aircraft
Extra Flugzeugbau EA300/L
Registration
N272X
Category
Airplane
Engines
1
Operator
David I Heaps
Operating rule
Part 91: General Aviation
Purpose of flight
Personal
Phase of flight
Not recorded
Route
Miles City → Great Falls
Aircraft damage
Substantial
Weather
VMC
Light
Day
NTSB number
SEA08CA121

People

Nobody was injured.

On board Died Serious Minor Uninjured
2 0 0 0 2

Probable cause

The pilot's misjudged landing flare. A contributing factor was the glare from the sun.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that as he approached the airport, he was unable to see the runway due to the sun being low on the horizon until he was on a close left base for the 10,502 foot-long runway. The pilot stated that he was faster than normal as he leveled the airplane to make a wheel landing about halfway down the runway. Upon touchdown, the airplane bounced and became airborne. As it settled back onto the runway, the main landing gear collapsed. The airplane veered to the left, struck a taxiway sign, and came to rest upright, adjacent to the runway. Examination of the airplane revealed that the undercarriage attach points in the fuselage sustained structural damage, and the right main landing gear was separated. No mechanical anomalies with the airframe or engine were reported.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.

Other Extra Flugzeugbau EA300 accidents

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
31 Jan 2003 Extra Flugzeugbau EA300/L
N33KL
Golden Gate, Florida, United States - Fatal 2
10 Nov 2001 Extra Flugzeugbau EA300/L
N2XA
St. Augustine, Florida, United States - No injuries -

Other accidents in this area

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
28 Aug 2008 Cessna TR182
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26 Jun 2008 Beechcraft A36
N824C
Ryegate, Montana, United States - Minor injuries -
27 Jul 2008 Bellanca 7GCBC
N50476
Helena, Montana, United States - No injuries -
10 May 2008 Cessna 172
N8103E
Big Timber, Montana, United States - No injuries -
31 Aug 2008 Piper PA-22-150
N4143D
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21 Dec 2008 Cessna 180C
C-FIWA
Great Falls, Montana, United States - No injuries -

All 170,864 records in United States