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NTSB Report

May 31, 2023 · W10 Tailwind NO Series · N456TW

Penrose, CO

Overview

Report Status
Final with probable cause
Event Type
Accident
Date
May 31, 2023
Injury Outcomes
No injuries (2 uninjured)
Location
Penrose, CO
Aircraft
W10 Tailwind NO Series (2007)
Tail Number
N456TW
Injuries
None
Aircraft Damage
Substantial
NTSB Number
CEN23LA211

The pilot, who was in the right seat, stated the left-seat pilot had just completed three uneventful full-stop landings, and then he took over the controls and was flying from the right seat. During the takeoff roll, he applied equal pressure to both rudder pedals. Suddenly, the right pedal broke forward, and the airplane veered off the left side of the runway. The left-seat pilot was unable to assist in controlling the airplane before it struck a berm. The airplane came to rest upright with the main landing gear collapsed, which resulted in substantial damage to the right side of the fuselage and engine mounts. Postaccident examination revealed that the right seat’s right rudder pedal stop, a U-shaped metal rod welded to the rudder pedal torque tube, broke at the weld, and the right pedal was beyond the normal forward limit. The weld appeared to have inadequate penetration into the base material, which resulted in a failure of the weld that allowed the rudder pedal to extend beyond the normal forward limit.

NTSB Probable Cause

The failure of the right rudder pedal stop due to an inadequate weld, which resulted in a loss of control on the ground.

Full Narrative

On May 31, 2023, about 0930 mountain daylight time, a Wittman W10 Tailwind airplane, N456TW, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident at Fremont County Airport (1V6), Penrose, Colorado. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot stated the other pilot in the left seat had just completed three uneventful full-stop landings, then he took over the controls and was flying from the right seat. During the takeoff roll, he applied equal pressure to both rudder pedals. Suddenly the right pedal broke forward and the airplane veered off the left side of the runway. The left-seat pilot was unable assist in controlling the airplane before it struck a berm. The airplane came to rest upright with the main landing gear collapsed, which resulted in substantial damage to the right side of the fuselage and engine mounts. Postaccident examination by the responding Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the right rudder pedal stop, a U-shaped metal rod welded to the rudder pedal torque tube, broke at the weld bead and the right pedal was beyond the normal forward limit. The inspector reported observing no corrosion, but that there was inadequate penetration of the weld between the rudder stop and rudder pedal torque tube. Figure 1 shows the right pedal condition after the accident. Figure 1. The right side pedals after the accident. The right pedal is forward of the normal limit. The left pedal is at the normal upright position (courtesy of the pilot). According to the pilot, the airplane was scratch-built from plans and was not assembled from a kit; therefore, the rudder pedals were fabricated by the original builder. The airframe had accumulated 339.2 hours of total time. There had been no discrepancies or recent maintenance completed related to the rudder pedals.

Flight

Event TypeAccident
Event Time09:30 MDT
Nearest AirportFremont County (0nm N)
Runway11
Runway Length5399 ft
Runway Width75 ft
Flight Plan FiledNone
Aircraft FireNo
Aircraft ExplosionNo

Aircraft

AircraftW10 Tailwind NO Series
Tail NumberN456TW
Aircraft CategoryAir
DamageSubstantial
Operating RulePart 91
Engines1
Engine TypeReciprocating
Engine DetailsLycoming · O-320-E2D · Reciprocating · 150
Seats2

People & Injuries

Injury SummaryNo injuries (2 uninjured)
Fatal0
Serious0
Minor0
Uninjured2
Total2
Crew 1Age 53 · Basc · None
Crew 2Age 64 · Second Class · None

Conditions

ConditionsVMC
LightDaylight
Wind100° @ 5 kt
Visibility10 sm
CeilingNone
Temperature / Dew Point70 F / 52
Altimeter30.03 inHg
Observation Time08:53
Weather SourcePILO

Appendix: Source Data