Primary finding
Probable cause
the pilot's inadequate compensation for the prevailing wind conditions which resulted in an inadvertent ground loop. The crosswind and the pilot's lack of familiarity with the aircraft are factors in this accident.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The airplane ground looped during the landing roll on runway 19. The pilot said that he failed to compensate for the prevailing crosswind and that the airplane did not experience any preimpact malfunctions or failures. The surface winds were from 210 degrees at 15 knots, gusting to 18 knots. The pilot had accrued 10 hours in the conventional gear airplane.
Source record
Factual narrative
On April 7, 1995, at 1600 hours mountain standard time, a Bellanca 7KCAB, N333JS, ground looped during the landing roll on runway 19 at La Cholla Airpark, Tucson, Arizona. The pilot was completing a local visual flight rules personal flight. The airplane, registered to and operated by Taildragger Pilots, Inc., Tucson, Arizona, sustained substantial damage. The certificated private pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The flight originated at La Cholla Airpark at 1530 hours. The operator said in a telephone interview conducted on April 13, 1995, that the pilot failed to correct for prevailing crosswinds. The surface winds were from 210 degrees at 15 knots, gusting to 18 knots. The pilot said in the aircraft accident report that he " . . . failed to maintain directional control . . . " and that he " . . . did not compensate for [the prevailing] crosswind . . . . " He also indicated that he accrued 10.2 hours in the accident airplane and that the airplane did not experience any preimpact malfunctions or failures. -