NAVAJO HKS N1762C accident near Arlington, Washington

Probable cause

The pilot's loss of directional control during landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to attain a proper touchdown point, which required his use of heavy braking to stop on the remaining runway and exacerbated the uneven braking effectiveness of the main wheels.

NTSB analysis

The pilot was landing the weight-shift-control aircraft. Onboard video indicated that the aircraft was about 100 ft above ground level as it passed the runway midpoint and subsequently touched down with about 630 ft of runway remaining. The aircraft landed on the left side of the runway centerline then veered to the right and nosed over on the right side of the runway.

The aircraft was equipped with two hydraulic disc brakes located on each of the main landing gear, which activated simultaneously by means of a foot pedal. The pilot performed an examination of the brakes after the accident and reported that the right wheel brake "had more stopping power" than the left wheel brake and attributed the loss of control to the braking power discrepancy between the two main wheels. He also stated that his long landing resulted in his application of heavier braking than usual. It is likely that the pilot's decision to continue the approach and landing despite the short runway distance remaining, and his subsequent use of heavy braking to stop on the available runway exacerbated the uneven braking effectiveness and contributed to the loss of control.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR18LA109 for the full record.