N9067A

On June 27, 2003, about 1650 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 170A, N9067A, was substantially damaged during an aborted landing at a private airstrip in Newcomerstown, Ohio. The certificated commercial pilot and a passenger sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the flight that departed the Richard Downing Airport (I40), Coshocton, Ohio. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

The pilot stated that the purpose of the flight was to familiarize the passenger with the location of several local private grass strips.

The airplane was landing to the north on a 1,200-foot-long, 30-foot-wide, turf runway. The pilot reported that the runway contained a 300-foot-long flat touchdown area, followed by an incline of about 30-percent. In addition, two 40-foot tall trees were located about 100 feet before the threshold.

The pilot described the approach as normal. He further stated that the airplane was about 5 knots fast and a little high, because his attention was divided between flying the approach, and pointing out several features of the strip to the passenger. The airplane touched down halfway down the runway and bounced. The pilot initiated a go-around; however, as the airplane climbed, the pilot observed two hay bales at the end of the runway. He tried to avoid the hay bales by making quick right turn, but the left side of the horizontal stabilizer hit the top of one of the bales. The airplane then pitched down and struck the ground nose first.

The hay bales were located about 30 feet beyond the end of the runway. The pilot stated he did not observe the hale bales until the airplane reached the crest of the runway, and he should have over flown the field to determine if any changes had occurred since his last landing attempt at the strip.

The pilot reported 626 hours of total flight experience, which included 115 hours in the make and model of the accident airplane.

The reported winds at an airport about 22 miles northeast of the accident site, at 1653, were variable at 6 knots.