Cessna 195B N3050B

Summary

On 17 October 2003 at about 01:45 local time, a Cessna 195B registered N3050B was involved in an accident near North Pole, Alaska, 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

17 October 2003 at 01:45

Classification

Accident

Location

North Pole, Alaska, United States

Nearest airport

Bradley Sky Ranch (95Z)

Coordinates

64.7592, -147.3878

Aircraft

Cessna 195B

Registration

N3050B

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

North Pole → North Pole

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC04LA004

Nobody was injured.

A fracture of the left brake master cylinder actuator rod, which resulted in failure of the left brake, a loss of directional control and an inadvertent ground loop during landing, and the separation of the left main landing gear strut due to fatigue. Factors contributing to the accident were the manufacturer's and the FAA's insufficient standards/requirements for inspection procedures of spring steel landing gear struts.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial certificated pilot was landing a tailwheel-equipped airplane on a gravel surface runway. During the landing roll, with about 35 knots of airspeed, the airplane began to drift to the right. The pilot said he applied left brake pressure, but the pedal went to the floor without producing any braking action from the left brake. The airplane departed off the right side of the runway and ground looped to the right. The left main gear strut fractured, just outboard from the fuselage, and the left wing struck the ground. The airplane received damage to the fuselage and the left wing. An FAA inspector examined the airplane at the accident site, and reported that the actuator rod, connecting the left brake pedal to the left brake master cylinder, was fractured. The point of separation had flat fracture planes oriented 90 degrees to the long axis of the rod. The FAA inspector also examined and photographed the separated left main landing gear strut. The point of separation was oriented perpendicular to the span of the gear strut. Visual examination of the fracture surface of the gear strut revealed flat fracture planes with multiple beach marks radiating in successive arc patterns from the outer edges of the strut. The landing gear on the accident airplane is a spring steel strut that is bolted to the fuselage at its upper end. Neither the manufacturer nor the FAA, have established a life limit (hours or cycles) for the main landing gear strut. No inspection procedures, other than a general visual inspection of the landing gear, have been specified by the manufacturer or the FAA.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.