Maule MX7 N3035M accident near Floydada, Texas

Probable cause

The pilot's decision to fly into and land at an area of known widespread high gusting wind, which resulted in a nose-over.

NTSB analysis

The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that he was moving the airplane across the country for a friend and had multiple refueling stops along his route. He added that, on his first attempt to land on the asphalt runway, he conducted a go-around due to the strong crosswind, and during the subsequent approach, he landed in the grass next to the asphalt runway to touch down with a gusting headwind. Once stopped in the grass with the engine running, he radioed over the common traffic advisory frequency to ask for assistance to tie down the airplane, but after 5 to 10 minutes, no one had responded. He added, "suddenly" a wind gust lifted the left wing, and the airplane corkscrewed clockwise and nosed over.

The right and left wing lift struts sustained substantial damage.

The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

The pilot reported that the wind was from 330° at 30 knots, gusting to 40 knots at the time of the accident. An automated weather observation station (AWOS), 22 nautical miles (nm) northwest from the accident site, recorded that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 320° at 29 knots, gusting to 42 knots. Another AWOS, 32 nm southwest from the accident site, recorded that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 320° at 29 knots, gusting to 43 knots.

A review of the recorded hourly weather observations from the two AWOSs revealed that, from about 30 minutes before the pilot departed to 1 hour after the accident time, the wind remained consistent from the northwest about 30 knots, gusting to 38 to 46 knots. The pilot reported that he had on-board weather capability.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for GAA17CA252 for the full record.