Summary
On September 19, 1997, a Bellanca 7KCAB (N88314) was involved in an incident near Englewood, CO. All 2 people aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: Failure of the right main landing gear due to multiple fatigue cracks.
On September 19, 1997, approximately 1420 mountain daylight time, a Bellanca 7KCAB, N88314, operated by Barnstormers Aero Services, Inc., was substantially damaged during a touch and go landing at Englewood, Colorado. The airline transport-rated pilot in command and a private pilot receiving instruction were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the instructional flight conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91. The flight originated at Englewood approximately 1400.
According to the pilot in command's accident report, the pilot receiving instruction (who was seated in the front seat) made a normal wheel landing on runway 28 at Centennial Airport.
This incident is documented in NTSB report FTW97LA368. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N88314.
Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
failure of the right main landing gear due to multiple fatigue cracks.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
On September 19, 1997, approximately 1420 mountain daylight time, a Bellanca 7KCAB, N88314, operated by Barnstormers Aero Services, Inc., was substantially damaged during a touch and go landing at Englewood, Colorado. The airline transport-rated pilot in command and a private pilot receiving instruction were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the instructional flight conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91. The flight originated at Englewood approximately 1400.
According to the pilot in command's accident report, the pilot receiving instruction (who was seated in the front seat) made a normal wheel landing on runway 28 at Centennial Airport. When the airplane touched down, the right main landing gear broke off and struck the leading edge and bottom surface of the right wing. The airplane eventually slid off the right side of the runway onto the grass and groundlooped, causing additional damage to the right wing tip.
The fractured right main landing gear strut and intact left main landing gear strut were sent to NTSB's metallurgical laboratory for examination. According to the metallurgist, the failure was "definitely fatigue from multiple sites on the bottom surface in the bend radius outboard (where it attaches to the fuselage)." There was "no obvious mechanical damage/corrosion damage." The left strut also exhibited "cracks in the same area and on the inboard side of the clamp."
The airplane maintenance records disclosed the landing gear had been replaced on January 14, 1984, at a total service time of 1,390 hours. At the time of the accident, the airplane had accrued 3,624 hours, a difference of 2,234 hours.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# FTW97LA368