Circle T Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Grantsburg, Wisconsin 54840
Wednesday, February 6, 2008 15:00 CST

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The pilot was performing touch-and-go landings on a turf runway covered with approximately 1-inch of wet snow and slush. The pilot had performed four touch-and-goes without incident. During the fifth landing roll, the pilot initially applied brake pressure to slow the airplane, but then released the brakes to allow the airplane to roll further down the runway. The pilot stated that the left brake seized and the airplane swerved to the left. The airplane was substantially damaged when it impacted a snowbank and nosed over. A post-accident inspection revealed that the left wheel would not rotate because of ice buildup between the rotor and the brake pad. The airplane was equipped with a castering nose gear and on-ground steering was accomplished solely by differential braking.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The seizure of the left brake due to a buildup of ice between the rotor and brake pad. Contributing to the accident was the snow and slush covered runway, and the snowbank.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 2/6/2008
Event Day of the Week Wednesday
Time of Event 1500
Event Time Zone Central Standard Time
Event City Grantsburg
Event State WISCONSIN
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 54840
Event Date Year 2008
Event Date Month 2
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 454102N
Event Location Longitude 0924114W
Event Location Airport Circle T Airport
Event Location Nearest Airport ID WS77
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport On Airport
Distance from airport in statute miles 0
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation 895
Weather Briefing Completeness --
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1456 Central Standard Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 270
Weather Observation Facility ID ROS
Elevation of weather observation facility 923
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 11
Time Zone of the weather observation CST
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height --
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) --
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) --
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) -2
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) -12
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 360
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 9
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 29.83
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury None
On Ground, Fatal Injuries --
On Ground, Minor Injuries --
On Ground, Serious Injuries --
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor --
Injury Total None 1
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All --
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 23418
NTSB Notification Source FAA
NTSB Notification Date Feb 7 2008 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information DMS
Date of most recent change to record Apr 30 2008 1:28PM
User who most recently changed record NTSB\johb
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office Federal Aviation Adminstration - Minneapolis FSDO

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N9483L
NTSB Number CHI08CA076
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? No
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name American Aviation
Aircraft Model AA-1A
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number AA1A-0283
Certified Max Gross Weight 1500
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class --
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 2
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Feb 1 2008 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection --
Airframe Hours 2500
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name Michael B. Shute
Aircraft Owner Street Address --
Aircraft Owner City Grantsburg
Aircraft Owner State WI
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 54840
Operator is an individual? Yes
Operator Name --
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address --
Operator City --
Operator State --
Operator Country --
Operator Zip code --
Operator Code --
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? --
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation --
Operator Certificate Number --
Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not --
Indicates Domestic or International Flight --
Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail --
Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) Personal
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code 18Y
Departure City Milaca
Departure State MN
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1330
Departure Time Zone CST
Destination Same as Local Flt crash at destination city
Destination Airport Code WS77
Destination City Grantsburg
Destination State WI
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight Landing - roll
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Mar 24 2008 2:46PM
User who most recently changed record DINC
Since inspection or accident Time of Accident
Event Location Runway Number and Location 27
Runway Length 2215
Runway Width 96
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --