Universal Stinson 108-1 N855F

Summary

On 14 July 2013 at about 23:15 local time, a Universal Stinson 108-1 registered N855F, operated by Mark S Erickson, was involved in an accident near Hector, Minnesota, 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

14 July 2013 at 23:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Hector, Minnesota, United States

Nearest airport

Hector Municipal Airport (1D6)

Coordinates

44.7311, -94.7147

Aircraft

Universal Stinson 108-1

Registration

N855F

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Mark S Erickson

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Eden Praire → Hector

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN13CA412

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inadvertent application of the brakes and failure to main directional control of the airplane during the takeoff roll, which resulted in the airplane nosing over.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the takeoff roll, at about 50 knots, the airplane began to drift to the left. The pilot stated that as the airplane drifted to the left, she inadvertently tapped on the right brake, and then released the brake while adding right ailerons inputs. Corrections were made to maneuver the airplane back to the runway centerline. The right wingtip was lowered and impacted the ground 2 or 3 times. She continued to apply inputs to the right rudder pedal. The airplane nosed-over and sustained substantial damage to both wing spars and the vertical stabilizer. The second pilot stated that he didn’t know why the airplane responded as it did and was unsure if there were any malfunctions with the airplane prior to the accident. He estimated the wind to be from the left at 5 knots. A postaccident examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed no evidence of preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. As the pilot was making continuous rudder pedal inputs, it is likely that she inadvertently applied the brakes.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.