N4012H

On September 8, 1996, about 2104 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped, home built experimental airplane, N4012H, sustained substantial damage while landing at Merrill Field, Anchorage, Alaska. The commercial certificated pilot/flight instructor and the owner/pilot-rated passenger aboard were not injured. The local, 14 CFR Part 91 flight operated in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan.

During a telephone interview with the NTSB investigator-in-charge on September 10, the pilot-in-command (PIC) stated that the purpose of the flight was for him to become familiar with the accident airplane's flight characteristics. Once he became familiar with the airplane, he intended to instruct the owner, a student pilot, and help him to become familiar with the airplane. The PIC said they departed Merrill Field about 1800, and flew across Cook Inlet to a gravel airstrip at Goose Bay to practice landings and high speed taxi tests. This was the pilot's first flight in the airplane. The PIC indicated that the airplane was difficult for him to control at low speeds, and touchy on the controls. He said he had difficulty landing the airplane at Goose Bay, and debated leaving the airplane there instead of flying it back to Anchorage, where he would have to land on a paved, less forgiving, runway. He said he elected to fly to Merrill Field, as Goose Bay is a remote location, and getting a ride to Anchorage would have been difficult.

The PIC said the airplane bounced two or three times after touchdown on runway 24. On the last bounce, the airplane went to the right, towards the ramp area. He said he initially added power, with the intent of aborting the landing, but experienced difficulty in controlling the airplane. The airplane continued to go to the right, towards parked aircraft, and he decided to reduce the power and land. The airplane landed off the paved surface, and collided with parked airplanes in the ramp area.

The airplane owner and the PIC said there was no known preaccident mechanical anomaly with the airplane, only that it was difficult to control at slow airspeeds.