Cessna 140A N5314C accident near Newburgh, New York

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control when the brakes bound and a subsequent ground loop. Contributing to the accident was the inadequate maintenance of the brakes by the pilot/owner.

NTSB analysis

During the landing, the pilot/owner adjusted for the left crosswind until the airplane touched down on the runway. He applied the left brake and rudder to maintain directional control during roll, but the left brake "seemed to lock up," and the airplane ground-looped left. The right tire separated from the right landing gear wheel and burst. A review of the airplane maintenance records revealed that, during the most recent owner-assisted annual inspection, the left-side brake caliper was found seized. It was removed, cleaned, lubricated, reinstalled by the owner, operationally checked, and found to be in airworthy condition. An unsupervised postaccident examination of the left wheel and brake assembly by the owner revealed that the wheel and tire would rotate with some resistance, that the caliper slides were rusty, and that the lubrication applied during the annual inspection did not completely allow the calipers to reliably move freely, which resulted in the brake binding on the final roll.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA13LA224 for the full record.