Amateur-built RV-7A N732JG accident near Jaffrey, New Hampshire

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control of the airplane during landing, which resulted in a touchdown off the paved runway surface and a collision with terrain during the subsequent aborted landing.

NTSB analysis

The pilot was landing the airplane at the destination airport and reported that during the landing approach, just before touchdown, the airplane suddenly drifted to the left. The airplane’s main landing gear briefly touched down off to the left side of the 134-ft-wide asphalt runway before the airplane became airborne again. The pilot added power to abort the landing, but heard a “rotating, whirring, vibration” noise from under the airplane and perceived that the airplane was not accelerating like he though it should. The airplane subsequently impacted the ground, nosed over, and came to rest inverted, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage, right wing, and empennage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA26LA212 for the full record.