American Legend Aircraft Co AL3 N948FS accident near Andover Township, New Jersey

Probable cause

The student pilot's excessive asymmetrical application of the brakes, which resulted in a nose over.

NTSB analysis

The student pilot was landing the tailwheel-equipped airplane on a soft turf runway that had experienced heavy rainfall the evening before. Upon touchdown, about a third of the way down the runway, the airplane bounced slightly before settling onto the turf; the pilot applied the brakes during the landing roll, the airplane turned left, then immediately nosed over and came to rest inverted. The impact resulted in substantial damage to the wing struts and vertical stabilizer. The pilot stated that the airplane had no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA21LA375 for the full record.