N32091

On May 25, 1996, about 1500 eastern daylight time, a Waco UPF-7, N32091, was substantially damaged during a rejected landing at Larry's Airport, East Canton, Pennsylvania. The private pilot received minor injuries and visual meteorological conditions prevailed. No flight plan had been filed for the personal flight which originated from the Vansant Airport, Erwinna, Pennsylvania, about 1330, and was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

In the NTSB Accident Report, the pilot stated:

"...Upon arrival at the strip I made a pass to check the condition and check the wind sock. I noted that the wind was generally out of the west and moderate so I proceeded to downwind to land. The approach was normal and I touched down at the intended point and rolled approximately 200 to 300 feet to the top of the slope when a gust directly across the runway put me back in the air but 90 to the runway heading.

I applied full power to go around and I found myself wallowing and not really flying very well. Apparently, the wind at that point was on my tail and with the hard rise in the terrain, I was past the limit of the plane. It stalled/mushed back to earth approximately 40 [feet] from a barbed wire fence and a stone pile that stopped my forward travel. The craft flipped over, damaging the prop, gear, upper and lower wings and the top of the tail."

According to a drawing by the pilot, the runway was 1800 feet long, and the runway overrun was on rising terrain. The stone wall that the airplane struck was at the end of the overrun, 1200 feet beyond the runway end and higher than the runway.

In a statement signed by the pilot and forwarded to the Safety Board by the FAA, the pilot reported:

"...The airplane was running well and the accident was a result of a bad late decision to go around."