Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
The pilot's inadvertent ground loop. Factors contributing to the accident were the wind gusts and crosswind conditions.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
On June 5, 2003, at 1330 central daylight time, a Cessna 140A, N5667C, owned and piloted by a private pilot, sustained substantial damage when it ground looped during landing on runway 13 (5,200 feet by 75 feet, dry concrete) at Grinnell Regional Airport (GGI), Grinnell, Iowa. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The pilot reported no injuries. The 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight was not operating on a flight plan. The flight departed Pella Municipal Airport (PEA), Pella, Iowa, at 1230, en route to GGI
The pilot reported he received a report from another aircraft at GGI that the winds were variable and that he "could pick [a] runway." The pilot stated that he entered a downwind for runway 13, and the approach and touchdown were normal. The pilot stated the airplane "seemed to take a right rear quartering gust." The airplane then swerved, ground looped, and subsequently nosed over.
The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures during the accident flight.
A weather reporting station at PEA, 21 nautical miles south-southwest of the accident site, recorded at 1335: winds from 210 degrees at 10 knots, gusting to 15 knots.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# CHI03LA157