Coulter Hugh Clarke PULSAR XP SERIES I N452PC

Summary

On 30 April 2014 at about 17:55 local time, a Coulter Hugh Clarke PULSAR XP SERIES I registered N452PC was involved in an accident near Bremerton, Washington, 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

30 April 2014 at 17:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Bremerton, Washington, United States

Nearest airport

Bremerton (PWT)

Coordinates

47.4950, -122.7747

Aircraft

Coulter Hugh Clarke PULSAR XP SERIES I

Registration

N452PC

Category

Airplane

Year built

1998

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bremerton → Bremerton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR14LA179

Nobody was injured.

Fatigue failure of the nose landing gear retention and pivot shaft, which resulted in the in-flight separation of the nose gear wheel and tire assembly.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During takeoff, the builder/owner/pilot of the experimental kit-built airplane did not notice any abnormalities. While airborne, he received a radio call from personnel at the airport advising him that a nose landing gear wheel and tire assembly had been found on the runway; they stated that they believed it had separated from his airplane. The pilot flew back to the airport and conducted a low pass, and the airport personnel confirmed that the airplane was missing its nose gear wheel and tire assembly. After flying for about 30 minutes so appropriate emergency services preparations could be made, the pilot landed the airplane. During the landing roll, the airplane settled on its nose, which resulted in substantial damage to the firewall. Examination of the airplane revealed that the steel shaft that attached the nose gear fork to the gear leg and functioned as its pivot axis had failed in reverse (bi-directional) bending fatigue. The underlying reason(s) for the fatigue failure could not be not determined. The pilot reported that similar previous failures had occurred on this model airplane. Because the kit manufacturer was no longer in business, some airplane owners had developed their own modifications to the nose gear assembly, but the accident airplane's nose gear had not been modified.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.