Primary finding
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain directional control while landing with gusting crosswinds.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The flight school's operations manager reported that the pilot was previously checked out in the accident model of airplane, and he was authorized to rent the airplane. On the day of the accident flight, the pilot and passenger departed for a planned local area flight to a neighboring airport. Air traffic control tower personnel reported that the pilot's landing approach to Runway 27L was uneventful. During the landing roll out, the airplane veered to the left of the runway. The pilot applied rudder pressure to correct the airplane's course, and the airplane veered to the right. The airplane departed the runway and contacted a 6-foot drainage ditch. The conventional landing gear sheared off, a wing lift strut bent, a wing impacted the ground, and structural tube frames/longerons in the airplane's belly were deformed upward. The pilot did not report experiencing any mechanical malfunction with the airplane during the accident flight. He stated that during the landing he had encountered a wind gust, which blew the airplane to the side of the runway. In taking corrective action to realign the airplane, he "reacted...too much." At 1539, the airport reported its surface wind was from 240 degrees at 10 knots, with 15-knot gusts.
Source record
Factual narrative
The flight school's operations manager reported that the pilot was previously checked out in the accident model of airplane, and he was authorized to rent the airplane. On the day of the accident flight, the pilot and passenger departed for a planned local area flight to a neighboring airport. Air traffic control tower personnel reported that the pilot's landing approach to Runway 27L was uneventful. During the landing roll out, the airplane veered to the left of the runway. The pilot applied rudder pressure to correct the airplane's course, and the airplane veered to the right. The airplane departed the runway and contacted a 6-foot drainage ditch. The conventional landing gear sheared off, a wing lift strut bent, a wing impacted the ground, and structural tube frames/longerons in the airplane's belly were deformed upward. The pilot did not report experiencing any mechanical malfunction with the airplane during the accident flight. He stated that during the landing he had encountered a wind gust, which blew the airplane to the side of the runway. In taking corrective action to realign the airplane, he "reacted...too much." At 1539, the airport reported its surface wind was from 240 degrees at 10 knots, with 15-knot gusts.