Amateur-built VANS RV 10 N865HB accident near Blairsville, Georgia

Probable cause

The pilot’s loss of directional control upon landing.

NTSB analysis

The airline transport pilot applied takeoff power to complete a touch-and-go landing. The airplane's nose turned right, and the pilot corrected with a left rudder application, but the airplane continued turning right. The pilot reduced engine power and then aborted the takeoff and applied left braking, but the airplane continued to the right, departed the runway, and travelled through a depression in the ground before coming to rest. When the main landing gear (MLG) dropped into the depression, the tail section struck the ground, which substantially damaged the tail structure.

The pilot reported that the "right main tire lost all pressure." Examination of the right MLG wheel revealed that the tire and the inner tube had rotated independently of each other on the rim and that the inner tube valve stem was severed. Based on the available evidence, the investigation could not determine whether the tire was flat before the accident or was caused when the MLG hit the depression.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA17LA217 for the full record.