Scottish BULLDOG 120 N416JA

Summary

On 19 May 2008 at about 21:00 local time, a Scottish BULLDOG 120 registered N416JA, operated by Steven M. Pili, was involved in an accident near Truckee, California, 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

19 May 2008 at 21:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Truckee, California, United States

Nearest airport

Truckee-Tahoe (TRK)

Coordinates

39.3200, -120.1394

Aircraft

Scottish BULLDOG 120

Registration

N416JA

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Steven M. Pili

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Truckee → Truckee

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX08CA170

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's inadequate compensation for the gusting crosswind and misjudged landing flare.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane's owner accompanied the pilot, who had received his private pilot certificate about 2 months before the accident, on a personal flight involving takeoffs and landings. The pilot reported that his approach for the final landing appeared normal. Just before landing he felt a possible wind lull or wind direction shift near the runway's surface, and the airplane touched down harder than average. The airplane's owner reported that the airplane touched down hard in a nose low and right wing low attitude. Immediately thereafter, the right main landing gear separated from the airplane. A subsequent airframe examination by the Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness inspector revealed the nose gear and right main landing gear were damaged in the accident to the extent that the nose gear attachment bracket was broken at the upper firewall attachment, and the right main landing gear attachment was torn from the wing spar web, fracturing the wing spar. The weather observation for the airport was showing winds from 220 degrees at 12 knots, with gusts to 17 knots, at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.