NTSB Factual Report

On August 5, 2001, at 1529 eastern daylight time, an Aerotek Pitts S2, N8065, was substantially damaged during landing at the Skydive Greene County Airport (I20), Xenia, Ohio. The certificated private pilot was seriously injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight which originated at the Delaware County Airport (MIE), Muncie, Indiana, about 1443. No flight plan was filed for the personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

Several witness observed the accident, and provided written statements. One witness said:

"A red and white bi-plane was coming in for a landing from the east to west. The airplane came in at a very high speed, and the pilot tried to land. He touched down once and bounced up again as if he wanted to take off again. Then he accelerated, pulled up slightly, and touched down once more. At that time, the pilot was heading toward the cornfield. The nose of the airplane went down, and the tail went straight up in the air for a moment as if it wanted to go end over end, but then it settled down."

A second witness said:

"I observed a red and white bi-plane landing on the southern grass strip. He appeared to be having difficulty bleeding off airspeed, and touched down three times before remaining on the ground. As he continued down the runway, he was unable to continue down the center. There was no significant winds on this day and no other traffic in the pattern. Two-thirds down the runway, on the left hand side is a very deep drainage ditch. He was 15 feet left of the runway, and hit the ditch at about 40-50 mph."

A third witness said:

"The plane approached from the east to the west, and when he touched down he bounced back up, traveled 50 yards approximately, then touched down again with a slight bounce. He then started to drift to the left, and could not get stopped before reaching the ditch. He impacted at approximately 20 to 30 mph."

The witness also reported that the engine sounded "fine" before the impact.

A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector performed an on-scene examination of the airplane. According to the inspector, substantial damage was observed to the fuselage and engine cowling. Examination of the engine revealed that the engine crankshaft flange was broken in several places around its circumference, and corrosion was noted on approximately 50 percent of the flange. The propeller remained attached to the crankshaft at the flange. However, the broken portion of the flange, and the propeller were angled 20-degrees to the right of the engine. One propeller blade displayed a slight bend, and the other blade was undamaged.

The engine crankshaft was examined at the NTSB Materials Laboratory, Washington, D.C., on October 29, 2001. The Materials Laboratory Factual Report stated that of the six ligaments connecting the center shaft portion to the outer circumference of the flange, four were completely fractured. According to the report:

"Portions of the mating fracture surfaces were relatively smooth with either a shiny appearance or a bluish tint, features consistent with post-fracture sliding contact damage. The remainder of the fracture surfaces appeared matte gray with some rough and some smooth areas, consistent with overstress fracture in tension and shear, respectively. Portions of the ligaments adjacent to the outer fracture surface were deformed aft, and portions adjacent to the inner fracture surface were deformed forward, consistent with overstress fracture in shear."

In a written statement, the pilot reported that he had no memory of the accident. However, during a telephone interview, he stated there were no mechanical deficiencies with the airplane.

Examination of the pilot's logbook revealed that he had about 264 hours of total flight experience. He had accumulated 39 hours in the accident airplane, since he purchased it in October 2000.

Weather reported at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, 20 miles to the northwest, at 1555, included wind from 070 degrees at 7 knots, 7 miles visibility, few clouds at 4,500 feet, a broken cloud layer at 25,000 feet, temperature 31 degrees Celsius, dew point 19 degrees Celsius, and an altimeter setting of 30.14 in Hg.

NTSB Probable Cause

The airplane's excessive airspeed during the approach, which resulted in the pilot's failure to maintain directional control during landing.