Primary finding
Probable cause
A failure of the left main landing gear due to fatigue cracking, which resulted the airplane’s left wing contacting the ground.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that after landing, inbound traffic was behind him, and he felt rushed to clear the runway and park the airplane. While taxiing to the ramp, the left main wheel rolled off the taxiway surface and into the grass. The left main landing gear’s axle separated from the landing gear leg, the airplane tipped over to the left, and the left wing struck the ground and was substantially damaged. Examination of photographs of the landing gear leg and axle fracture surfaces showed that they displayed indications of fatigue cracking that likely initiated at the toe of the weld that attached the axle to the leg.