Canadian Light Acft Sales &Svc BUSHCADDY EXPLORER R N335BE

Summary

On 20 August 2024 at about 22:00 local time, a Canadian Light Acft Sales &Svc BUSHCADDY EXPLORER R registered N335BE was involved in an accident near Charleston, West Virginia, 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

20 August 2024 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Charleston, West Virginia, United States

Nearest airport

West Virginia Intl Yeager (CRW)

Coordinates

38.3760, -81.5929

Aircraft

Canadian Light Acft Sales &Svc BUSHCADDY EXPLORER R

Registration

N335BE

Category

Airplane

Year built

2008

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Charlottesville → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA24LA356

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control of the airplane while landing in a crosswind, which resulted in a ground loop and subsequent landing gear collapse.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was landing the tailwheel-equipped airplane at the end of an uneventful cross-country flight. During the landing roll the airplane “weathervane[d]” into the prevailing left crosswind, and then began to swerve as the pilot made corrections with inputs to the rudder and ailerons. The airplane continued to swerve, resulting in a ground loop to the left. During the ground loop, the right main landing gear collapsed, and the right wing subsequently struck the runway, resulting in substantial damage. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.