Concord, CA, USA
N3170Z
Piper PA-22-150
The airplane ground looped during the landing roll. The pilot noted prior to landing that there was a 90-degree crosswind at 10 knots. During the landing roll the airplane veered to the right. When the pilot added full left rudder and brakes he overcorrected the airplane and it veered to the left. He was not able to return the airplane back to runway heading. The airplane continued in a left circle and ground looped. No mechanical anomalies were noted with the airplane by the pilot.
On May 18, 2001, at 1530 hours Pacific daylight time, a Piper PA-22-150, N3170Z, sustained substantial damage when it ground looped during the landing roll on runway 32R at Buchanan Field, Concord, California. The pilot/owner operated the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The private pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The local area flight departed the Byron, California, airport at 1500. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. In the pilot's written statement to the Safety Board, he indicated that on the landing roll the left wing was lifted and the airplane veered to the right. He pushed on the left rudder and the brakes and the airplane "swung" to the left. He was not able to return the airplane to runway heading. The pilot stated that the airplane continued to the left and swung in a circle on its right wing tip. The airplane came to rest 180 degrees from the runway heading. The pilot further reported that a crosswind existed that was 90 degrees to the runway at 10 knots. No mechanical discrepancies were noted with the airplane by the pilot.
The pilot's inadequate compensation for wind conditions, resulting in a loss of directional control and the inadvertent ground loop.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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