Sinclair ZENITH 701 N701TD

Summary

On 8 October 2004 at about 23:00 local time, a Sinclair ZENITH 701 registered N701TD was involved in an accident near Augusta, Kansas, 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

8 October 2004 at 23:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Augusta, Kansas, United States

Coordinates

37.6667, -97.0169

Aircraft

Sinclair ZENITH 701

Registration

N701TD

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Augusta → Augusta

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI05CA003

Nobody was injured.

The manufacturer's inadequate design/production of the landing gear axle leading to its separation and the airplanes subsequent nose over during the landing roll.. A factor was the axle's separation from its spring.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The experimental amateur-built tailwheel airplane sustained substantial damage when the airplane nosed over during a landing. The pilot's accident report stated, "On touch down at private strip, landing slightly heavy but nothing excessive. Left main wheel contacted a slight depression and the axle separated. Left gear mainspring dug in causing plane to nose over [and] rotate to the left. Left over momentum caused the right wing to then strike the runway. After stopping, the tail then dropped back onto the ground." The pilot's safety recommendation stated that the "accident would not have happened if the axle assembly have been designed with adequate structure ... ." The axle manufacturer stated that ownership changed in November of 2000. The earlier company produced the WHLA7 Flange Mount Axles shipped with the accident airplane's kit. The current company designed the same model axle to have a "reinforcing ring welded to the base at the axle flange interface and the larger diameter hole in the flange base that accepts the axle stub." The manufacturer issued a Service Bulletin SRV101804 that showed the new design and an exchange program. That service bulletin is available through their website, www.matcomfg.com, on its technical support page.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.