Piper J5A N38AW

Summary

On 24 July 2011 at about 02:40 local time, a Piper J5A registered N38AW was involved in an accident near Biddle, 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.

Date

24 July 2011 at 02:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Biddle, Montana, United States

Nearest airport

Mader Ranch Private (PVT)

Coordinates

45.1667, -105.3333

Aircraft

Piper J5A

Registration

N38AW

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Biddle → Biddle

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR11LA370

Nobody was injured.

Failure of the left main landing gear strut during the landing roll due to a preexisting crack.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the landing roll on the grass airstrip, the nose of the airplane began to drop, and the pilot confirmed that he was not applying excessive brake pressure. The nose continued to descend, then the airplane dropped back onto the tailwheel and onto its left wing. Examination revealed that the left main landing gear aft strut failed, and signatures consistent with a preexisting crack in the aft landing gear strut at the axle knuckle were observed. The area of failure was obscured by fabric covering material, thereby limiting the pilot’s ability to observe the crack during a preflight check.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.