14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, August 24, 2012 in Robbinsville, NJ
Probable Cause Approval Date: 12/11/2012
Aircraft: STEARMAN AIRCRAFT M-2, registration: N9055
Injuries: 1 Minor.
NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.
According to the pilot, when the tailwheel-equipped airplane touched down during landing, it began to veer to the left. He attempted to straighten the airplane by applying right brake, but the airplane continued to the left, ground looped, and then came to rest inverted, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll.
NTSB Identification: ERA12CA533
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, August 24, 2012 in Robbinsville, NJ
Aircraft: STEARMAN AIRCRAFT M-2, registration: N9055
Injuries: 1 Minor.
NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.
According to the pilot, when the tailwheel equipped airplane touched down during landing, it began to veer to the left. He attempted to straighten the subsequent landing roll by applying right brake, but the airplane continued to the left, ground looped, and then came to rest inverted, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 9055 Make/Model: M2 Description: 1929 STEARMAN M-2
Date: 08/24/2012 Time: 1625
Event Type: Incident Highest Injury: Minor Mid Air: N Missing: N
Damage: Unknown
LOCATION
City: TRENTON State: NJ Country: US
DESCRIPTION
AIRCRAFT ON LANDING, FLIPPED OVER, TRENTON, NJ
INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 0
# Crew: 1 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 1 Unk:
# Pass: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
OTHER DATA
Activity: Unknown Phase: Landing Operation: OTHER
FAA FSDO: PHILADELPHIA, PA (EA17) Entry date: 08/27/2012
http://registry.faa.gov/N9055
1929 Stearman M-2 (N9055) flipped over while landing at Trenton-Robbinsville Airport (N87) on Friday. There were no serious injuries.
Photo by Sean Lynch
A vintage plane flipped after landing at the Trenton-Robbinsville Airport (N87), next to the Miry Run Golf Course on Friday afternoon, but the pilot was not seriously injured.
Photo by Sean Lynch
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ROBBINSVILLE – A restored 1920s U.S. Army mail delivery plane flipped while attempting to land at Trenton Robbinsville Airport after the pilot apparently lost control, police said.
Pilot Alan Lopez suffered minor injuries, Lt. Scott Texidor said. He was alone in the bi-plane.
Fuel leaked from the plane after it came to a rest upside down, Texidor said. A HAZMAT team is on the scene cleaning the spill and a crane was en route to turn the plane back over, Texidor said.
Phil Schirmer, a pilot at the airport who witnessed the accident and was the first to respond, said Lopez had a cut over his right eye and a bump on his head but was conscious and seemed otherwise unharmed.
"I thought it was going to be really cool to get to watch this beautiful old plane land like that, but unfortunately, it turned into a disaster," Schrimer said. "He's really lucky."
ROBBINSVILLE — A recently restored 1929 biplane flipped upside down after landing at Robbinsville airport Friday afternoon, but the pilot walked away from the crash with only a minor cut on his forehead.
Township police, as well as firefighters from Robbinsville and surrounding communities, responded to the accident, which occurred on a runway near the 16th hole of the Miry Run Golf Course. There were no injuries on the ground.
The pilot told a reporter after the crash that he was “fine,” but declined to give his name. Robbinsville police could not immediately provide additional information.
The upside-down plane with its wheels pointed skyward drew a group of curious onlookers to the small airport on Sharon Road and required the closing of the runway to air traffic. Airport officials said the plane would not be moved from the runway until a Federal Aviation Administration investigator arrived later Friday afternoon.
http://www.centraljersey.com
