Wood THORP T-18 N335BW

Summary

On 1 January 2003 at about 21:55 local time, a Wood THORP T-18 registered N335BW was involved in an accident near Stephenville, Texas, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 January 2003 at 21:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Stephenville, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Clark Field (SEP)

Coordinates

32.2153, -98.1775

Aircraft

Wood THORP T-18

Registration

N335BW

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Stephenville → Baytown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW03LA069

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot's loss of directional control as result of his failure to compensate for the prevailing wind conditions. A contributing factor was the gusty crosswinds.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot of a tailwheel-equipped homebuilt airplane lost control of the aircraft during the takeoff roll from the 4,200-foot long by 75-foot wide asphalt Runway 32. The 647-hour instrument-rated private pilot stated that he applied full power slowly, holding back pressure on the controls until the airplane became airborne. During the transition from back pressure to forward pressure a gust of wind came from the west. The pilot was unable to compensate for the wind in a timely fashion to maintain directional control of the airplane. The airplane became airborne after cresting the top of a berm on the east side of the runway, and landed hard on the far side of the berm, spraying the landing gear. The nearest weather reporting station, which is located 34-nautical miles north of the accident site, reported winds from 290 degrees at 17 knots, gusting to 24 knots. The peak winds were reported from 270 degrees at 27 knots.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.