Cessna 180G N98FC

Summary

On 27 March 2009 at about 22:45 local time, a Cessna 180G registered N98FC, operated by Richard E. Wallace, was involved in an accident near Wendover, Utah, 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

27 March 2009 at 22:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Wendover, Utah, United States

Nearest airport

Wendover Airport (KENV)

Coordinates

40.7122, -114.0292

Aircraft

Cessna 180G

Registration

N98FC

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Richard E. Wallace

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wendover → Wendover

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR09LA167

Nobody was injured.

A loss of directional control during landing as a result of the binding in one main landing gear brake assembly due to incorrect maintenance procedures. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to correctly reconfigure the airplane during an attempted rejected landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The tailwheel-equipped airplane began veering to the right immediately after touchdown and the pilot's corrective rudder inputs could not bring it back in line with the runway. He therefore initiated a rejected landing, but did not correctly reconfigure the airplane for takeoff. The pilot ultimately aborted the rejected takeoff, but during his attempt to bring the airplane to a stop it nosed over in rough terrain off the side of the runway. The investigation revealed that there was a lack of free rotational movement (binding) in the right main gear brake assembly. The wheel was hard to turn by hand, with the resistance to free movement due to the pressure being applied to the brake rotor by the new brake pads that were installed about three to four flight hours prior to the accident. A postaccident interview with the mechanic who installed the pads determined that after the installation of the pads, the wheel was not jacked up off of the ground so that free movement of the rotor and wheel could be established. Instead, the determination of free movement was made based upon the fact that no resistance was noted when the airplane was pushed out of the hangar by hand. At the time the airplane was rolled out of the hangar the brake rotor was at ambient temperature. Shims are available to insert between the two halves of the brake caliper upon reassembly, and one should have been installed in this situation in order to reduce the amount of resistance present without pilot brake application.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.