Primary finding
Probable cause
the pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during its landing roll. Encounter with an embankment (dirt bank) was a related factor.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The pilot said he made a normal approach and wheel landing to the north, because the wind sock indicated a left quartering headwind at 10 knots. As soon as the tail wheel touched the runway, it began to shimmy. The airplane veered to the left and the pilot corrected using right brake. The airplane then veered to the right, struck a small embankment, and spun around to the right, coming to rest on a southerly heading. A statement submitted by the pilot-rated passenger corroborated the pilot's report, although he said the wind shifted suddenly as the tail wheel touched the ground. Examination of the tail wheel by FAA inspectors revealed no apparent previous damage. Damage to the airplane was confined to the main landing gear, right wing and left elevator.
Source record
Factual narrative
On October 16, 1997, approximately 1400 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 180J, N7527K, was substantially damaged when it ground looped during landing at a private airstrip in Chama, New Mexico. The private pilot and a private pilot-rated passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for the personal flight conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91. The flight originated at Santa Rosa, New Mexico, approximately 1315. The pilot said he made a normal approach and wheel landing to the north because the wind sock indicated a left quartering headwind at 10 knots. As soon as the tail wheel touched the runway, it began to shimmy. The airplane veered to the left and the pilot corrected using right brake. The airplane then veered to the right, struck a small embankment, and spun around to the right, coming to rest on a southerly heading. A statement submitted by the pilot rated passenger corroborated the pilot's report, although he said the wind shifted suddenly as the tail wheel touched the ground. Examination of the tail wheel by FAA inspectors revealed no apparent previous damage. Damage to the airplane was confined to the main landing gear, right wing and left elevator. -