Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
The noncertificated pilot's inadequate preflight planning, which resulted in landing on a runway of inadequate length and subsequent runway excursion.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Historical)
Analysis
On August 19, 2012, about 1750 eastern daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Kolb Aircraft Company Mark 3 airplane, N520SK, impacted a tree and terrain while landing on a private airstrip near Onondaga, Michigan. The noncertificated pilot, who was the sole occupant, reported no injuries. The airplane sustained substantial wing and fuselage damage. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual flight rules (VFR) conditions prevailed for the flight, which did not operated on a VFR flight plan. The flight originated from a private airstrip near Eaton Rapids, Michigan, about 1735.
According to the pilot’s accident report, he flew to the destination airstrip where he found that the strip was too short for the speed of the landing. The airplane went off the end of the runway and impacted a stump. The pilot indicated that there were no malfunctions with the airplane during the accident flight.
At 1756, the recorded wind at the Jackson County Airport-Reynolds Field, near Jackson, Michigan, was 250 degrees at 5 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# CEN12LA565