N317JK

On November 23, 1997, at 1730 eastern standard time, a Christen Industries Pitts-S-2B, N317JK, right main landing gear collapsed, according to the pilot, during a landing roll out on runway 8 at the Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The instructional flight operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with no flight plan filed. According recorded weather data, visual weather conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The certified flight instructor and the private pilot were not injured. The flight's exact departure time from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was not determined.

According to the pilot, they had completed a period of aerobatic training and had returned to the airport for a full stop landing. The pilot reported that the airplane had rolled about 500 feet after touching down on the runway 8. At this point he initiated normal braking to stop the airplane. The pilot stated that, when he applied brake pressure to the right wheel, there was no response. The airplane veered to the left. As the airplane veered off the left side of the runway, the right main landing gear collapsed.

The post- accident examination of the airplane disclosed that there was structural damage to the fuselage above the main landing gear attach fittings. The tail wheel and tail post at the aft portion of the fuselage were torn from the airframe. The right main landing gear assembly sustained major structural damage. The right main landing gear brake assembly was also damaged, and a functional check of the brake assembly was not possible. The left brake assembly was not damaged and functioned normally (see attached FAA Inspector's Statement).

During a telephone conversation with the aircraft operator, the operator reported that the airplane veered off the runway approximately 2,200 feet from the threshold of runway 8. The operator stated that the airplane rested on a magnetic heading approximately 270 degrees left of the landing runway heading. According to the operator, there was a quartering tailwind at the approximate time of the attempted landing. The operator also reported that, since this airplane has very sensitive landing characteristics, longer steering springs had been installed on the tail wheel steering assembly (see attached Record of Telephone Conversation).

Runway 8 is 6001 feet long and 100 feet wide.