Aeronca 65-TAC (L-3) N39309

Summary

On 16 September 1998 at about 16:30 local time, a Aeronca 65-TAC (L-3) registered N39309 was involved in an accident near Dalton, Georgia, United States. One person was 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

16 September 1998 at 16:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Dalton, Georgia, United States

Nearest airport

Dalton Municipal Airport (DNN)

Coordinates

34.7901, -84.9202

Aircraft

Aeronca 65-TAC (L-3)

Registration

N39309

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Hawkins County → Houston

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ATL98LA126

Nobody was injured.

The pilots failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during landing. A factor was the pilot's lack of experience in the same make and model airplane.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Following a landing on runway 32, the airplane veered off the runway to the right, continued down an embankment, then nosed over inverted. Post crash examination of the airplane revealed the right tail wheel castering spring was absent, which the pilot believed resulted in the loss of control. The airport manager noted that the skid marks on the runway indicated a gradual right turn shortly after touchdown, with the left main tire mark three times wider than the right, and the tail wheel skid mark occurring about 15 feet northwest of the main tire marks. He stated that a loss of the right castering spring would have resulted in the airplane veering to the left. The pilot had 128 total flight hours with six hours in the same make and model airplane. There was a four knot cross wind from 030 degrees.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.