N4706H – Piper PA-11 – 2006-07-15 NTSB Accident Report

On July 15, 2006, a Piper PA-11 (N4706H) was involved in an incident near Turner, MT. 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: The passenger's inadvertent activation of the airplane's brakes during the landing roll, resulting in the pilot's loss of control and subsequent nose over. A factor was the pilot's inadequate preflight planning/preparation by not briefing the passenger about the brake peddle position, and the importance of not interfering with the operation of the brakes.

With the pilot occupying the rear seat and the passenger the front seat, a normal landing was completed. During the rollout while the airplane was decelerating to about 20 miles per hour, the airplane's brakes locked up resulting in the aircraft nosing over and coming to rest inverted. A post accident discussion between the pilot and his passenger revealed that the passenger had his feet on the airplane's brakes during the landing roll, resulting in the nose over. The pilot stated that the accident might have been prevented if he had described more thoroughly the brake pedal position and how important it is to stay off them while landing and taxiing. Both wings, the rudder and the fuselage sustained substantial damage.

This incident is documented in NTSB report SEA06CA144. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N4706H.