Cessna 182A N6196B accident near Buffalo, Oklahoma

Probable cause

The separation of the nose wheel axle bolt and the nose wheel during the landing roll for reasons that could not be determined because the bolt was not recovered.

NTSB analysis

The private pilot stated that the airplane touched down about halfway down the turf runway and that the landing was normal until the nosewheel touched down, when he heard a loud noise from the nose landing gear area. The airplane nosed over on the runway and came to rest inverted. Markings in the turf showed 3 tire tracks consistent with all three landing gear. The center tire mark transitioned into two parallel tracks consistent with the nose gear fork dragging through the grass. About 20 ft later, there was a single track in the runway with about six perpendicular propeller slash marks through the track, consistent with the nose gear strut collapsing and the rotating propeller striking the ground as the airplane continued forward. The nose wheel axle tube was found near the end of the slash marks. The single track continued to the main wreckage.

A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the nose wheel had separated from the nose gear fork, and the fork separated from the strut. A grease seal ring from the nose wheel assembly and a portion of the nose wheel axle tube were found in the debris path. The nose wheel axle bolt was not recovered.

The available evidence is consistent with the nose wheel axle bolt separating from the wheel, which resulted in separation of the nosewheel. The nose wheel axle bolt was not found during the investigation; therefore, the reason for its separation could not be determined.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN17LA235 for the full record.