West Jordan, UT, USA
N9181E
Maule M-5-235C
The pilot noted the wind sock indicated the wind was about 20 degrees left of runway centerline. After making a normal crosswind landing, the airplane nosed to the right and he made a correction. When the airplane assumed a three point attitude, it veered to the left. He corrected with right rudder "without letting the wind under left wing" but it had no effect and the airplane departed the runway and nosed over. The pilot said the bolt securing the tail wheel leaf spring had sheared and the tail wheel was driven up against the rudder. A search of the area failed to locate the nut or the bolt end. He said the break was an "extrusion and clean downward shear," but an FAA inspector who examined the airplane stated the damage was consistent with that of a hard landing. Official recorded winds were 320 degrees at 7 knots, with gusts to 14 knots.
On May 25, 2001, approximately 1545 mountain daylight time, a Maule M-5-235C, N9181E, registered to and operated by the pilot, was substantially damaged when it collided with terrain during landing at Salt Lake City Municipal 2 Airport, West Jordan, Utah. The private pilot and his passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time, and a VFR flight plan had been filed for the personal flight being conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91. The flight originated from Nampa, Idaho, at an undetermined time. According to the pilot's accident report, he monitored the Salt Lake City Municipal 2 AWOS (Automated Weather Observing Station) and planned on a "standard crosswind landing" on runway 34 since the wind sock indicated the wind was about 20 degrees left of runway centerline. After making a normal crosswind landing, the airplane nosed to the right and he made a correction. When the airplane assumed a three point attitude, it veered to the left. He corrected with right rudder "without letting the wind under left wing" but it had no effect. As the airplane departed the left side of the runway, the right main gear collapsed and the wheel contacted and bent the wing drag brace. The right wing tip also struck the runway and the airplane nosed over. The pilot said that his examination of the airplane revealed that the bolt securing the tail wheel leaf spring had sheared and the tail wheel was driven up against the rudder. A search of the area failed to locate the nut or the distal end of the bolt. His examination of the bolt indicated "extrusion and clean downward shear." An FAA inspector who examined the airplane stated the damage was consistent with that of a hard landing. Winds recorded at Salt Lake City International Airport, located 13 miles north of Salt Lake City Municipal 2 Airport, were from 320 degrees at 7 knots, with gusts to 14 knots.
the pilot inadvertently flaring the airplane too high above the ground, resulting in a hard landing that sheared a bolt in the tail wheel assembly. This rendered directional control impossible and induced an uncontrolled ground loop. A contributing factor was the crosswind.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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