Bellanca 8GCBC N4159Y accident near Grind Stone City, Michigan

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll on a wet turf runway with a quartering tailwind.

NTSB analysis

The pilot was conducting a flight in a tailwheel equipped airplane. During the landing, the airplane bounced, and then settled back to the runway. The tail of the airplane rose, the nose of the airplane dropped, and the propeller struck the ground. The airplane came to rest inverted resulting in substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer, rudder, both wings, and wing struts. The pilot noted that the airstrip was more wet than he anticipated. The pilot reported that the airplane had no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operations. Wind conditions at the time of the accident were from 120° at 9 knots, the pilot landed on runway 36.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN24LA136 for the full record.