NTSB Factual Report

On August 15, 2001, approximately 1730 mountain daylight time, a Pitts Special SC-1 experimental-category amateur-built airplane, N8351, being flown by an airline transport pilot who had purchased the aircraft earlier in the day, was substantially damaged in a nose down following a loss of directional control and departure from the runway surface during landing roll at Jerome County Airport, Jerome, Idaho. The pilot was not injured in the accident. Visual meteorological conditions, with variable winds at 4 knots, were reported by the Automated Surface Observation System (ASOS) at Jerome at 1653, and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR 91 personal flight from Rigby, Idaho.

The pilot reported that he made the landing to the east. He stated that he made a three-point touchdown, characterizing the landing as "perfect" in his NTSB accident report. He stated that the aircraft then began a slow drift to the right. He reported that he applied left rudder pedal to counteract the right drift, with no response. He stated that he then added more left rudder, still with no response. The pilot reported that he then applied left brake, but did not get any braking action. The aircraft subsequently departed the runway at a speed estimated by the pilot at about 35 MPH. The left main landing gear then hit a hole and the aircraft came to rest about 25 feet off the right side of the runway near the runway exit point. The aircraft damage included a bent fuselage longeron.

The pilot reported that a post-accident inspection disclosed that the left rudder deflection was about 50 to 55 degrees, with right rudder deflection measured at 30 degrees. The pilot did not identify who conducted this post-accident inspection. The pilot stated that the aircraft plans call for 30 degrees of rudder deflection in both directions (this was verified by plans for the Pitts S-1C aircraft furnished by Steen Aero Labs of Palm Bay, Florida, the current holders of the rights to the S-1C aircraft design.) The pilot stated that with the rudder able to move 50 to 55 degrees, the rudder pedal rested against the firewall, preventing the left brake from being applied. The pilot reported that the aircraft received an annual inspection by the previous owner (a certificated airframe and powerplant mechanic) on the date of sale, in July 2001. The FAA aircraft registry indicates that the accident aircraft has an experimental/amatuer-built aircraft airworthiness certificate issued on June 29, 1981, but does not identify the individual who built the aircraft (the registry identifies the aircraft manufacturer as "PITTS SPECIAL", and gives the aircraft year as 1972.)

In a telephone conversation with the previous owner/mechanic on April 17, 2002, the previous owner/mechanic verified that he had performed an annual inspection on the accident aircraft in conjunction with the sale. He stated that he had owned the accident aircraft for several years, and that he had flown 110 hours in it without any problems (he is also a certificated pilot). He stated that he had never adjusted anything on the rudders (including rudder travel), and that the airplane had flown well. He stated that he did inform the accident pilot at the time of the sale that in this aircraft, if one pushed on the rudder pedals, the pedal would go to the firewall and braking would not be possible. The previous owner/mechanic stated he believed this to be the case for both directions of rudder travel. He stated he told the accident pilot that the remedy for this was to push with both feet on the rudder pedals, and tip the toe in the desired direction of braking. The previous owner/mechanic stated that he did not note any asymmetry in rudder travel while he owned it, and that during his inspections, he only checked to make sure the rudder hit the stops with no binding and with proper operation. The previous owner/mechanic further stated that during the accident pilot's first takeoff attempt from Rigby, he observed the pilot go off the right side of the runway. He stated that he did not observe any damage to the aircraft after this occurrence. He stated the pilot then taxied back and made a second takeoff attempt, in which he got airborne on the accident flight to Jerome.

Following the telephone conversation with the previous owner/mechanic, the NTSB investigator-in-charge (IIC) contacted the accident pilot by telephone for a follow-up interview on April 18, 2002. The IIC asked the accident pilot about whether the previous owner/mechanic had told him at the time of sale about the anomaly with the rudders, and what the previous owner/mechanic had told him about how to deal with the problem. The accident pilot stated that the previous owner/mechanic did tell him about the rudder problem. He stated he thought the previous owner/mechanic's remarks did not make sense, but that he did not quite connect the information in his mind. He stated that he thought he probably should have questioned it more, and that he had heard the previous owner/mechanic say it but "it just kind of went over me." He said they were also talking about a lot of other things at the time as well, and in essence, he thought this information was strange but did not really process it mentally at the time. The accident pilot confirmed that he did go off the side of the runway on his first takeoff attempt from Rigby, stating that this was due to him losing sight of the runway environment on his takeoff (he stated there are a lot of weeds and brush growing up out of the runway surface at Rigby, which make it difficult to see the runway surface including where the edges of the runway are.) The accident pilot stated he did not get out of the airplane at that time (to check for damage), but that the previous owner/mechanic then walked over. He reported that he did not hit anything in this occurrence. He stated that on his second takeoff attempt, he got airborne on the accident flight to Jerome.

The FAA inspector who examined the aircraft after the accident reported that he found asymmetric movement of the rudder pedals, and noted a dent in the firewall where the pedal had contacted it. His recollection was that this was on the left side. When asked if he had observed any evidence to indicate that the rudder travel asymmetry might be a result of accident damage, he replied that he had not, and that when he examined the rudder stops at the aft end of the aircraft, they were not adjusted equally.

According to the U.S. Government Airport/Facility Directory, Jerome County Airport has one runway, 08-26. The asphalt runway is 5,201 feet long, 60 feet wide, and slopes up to the east at 1.8%. The airport elevation is 4,048 feet.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during landing. Factors included: an incorrectly manufactured or adjusted rudder travel setting, resulting in restricted movement of the left brake; the mechanic's failure to adjust the rudder travel to the correct tolerance; and the pilot's operation of the aircraft with a known equipment deficiency.