Primary finding
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to abort the landing. A factor was the wet grass
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The pilot experienced no braking action after landing on a 2,500 foot wet grass airstrip. As the airplane continued sliding down the runway, the pilot initiated a ground loop to avoid going through a fence at the end of the strip. The left main landing gear and the nose landing gear collapsed resulting in substantial damage to the airframe
Source record
Factual narrative
On Saturday, July 3, 1993, at approximately 0900 central daylight time, a Beech 95 B55B airplane, N258P, was substantially damaged while landing near Ashdown, Arkansas. The commercial pilot and his three passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the executive flight. According to the operator, the pilot intentionally ground looped the airplane as he approached the fence at the departure end of the grass strip. During the landing roll the pilot reported he experienced minimum braking action; he further stated that the grass airstrip was wet due to an unusually heavy morning dew. During an interview the pilot stated that the side loading imposed by the ground loop collapsed the nose and left main landing gears, resulting in structural damage to the left wing and airframe. -