Laurel Muni Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Laural, Montana 59106
Tuesady, December 24, 2013 14:10 MST

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The pilot reported that during takeoff with a gusting crosswind, he was surprised by the door popping open as the right wing lifted up. He attempted to level the wings but was unsuccessful. The left wing tip touched the grass beside the runway, the airplane pivoted around and the right landing gear collapsed as it made contact with the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the wing and to the fuselage. The pilot reported no pre-accident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during takeoff with a gusting crosswind, which resulted in the collision with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's distraction when the door popped open.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 12/24/2013
Event Day of the Week Tuesday
Time of Event 1410
Event Time Zone Mountain Standard Time
Event City Laural
Event State MONTANA
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 59106
Event Date Year 2013
Event Date Month 12
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 454221N
Event Location Longitude 1084524W
Event Location Airport LAUREL MUNI
Event Location Nearest Airport ID 6S8
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport On Airport
Distance from airport in statute miles 0
Degrees magnetic from airport 54
Airport Elevation 3517
Weather Briefing Completeness --
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 2053 Coordinated Universal Time? Same as GMT
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 56
Weather Observation Facility ID KBIL
Elevation of weather observation facility 3570
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 11
Time Zone of the weather observation UTC
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 9000
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Few
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) 3
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) -6
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 280
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 24
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) 36
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 30.12
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report METAR KBIL 242053Z 28024G36KT 10SM FEW090 FEW160 0
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) 32471
NTSB Notification Source FAA NWM Operations Center
NTSB Notification Date --
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information --
Date of most recent change to record Mar 24 2014 2:02PM
User who most recently changed record coos
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N41WY
NTSB Number WPR14CA076
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? --
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name AVIAT AIRCRAFT INC
Aircraft Model A-1C-200
Aircraft Series Identifier UNDESIGNAT
Aircraft Serial Number 3121
Certified Max Gross Weight --
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class --
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats 1
Total number of seats on the aircraft --
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Dec 31 2012 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 62
Airframe Hours 160
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site Unknown
ELT Type Unknown
Aircraft Owner Name HARDY AG INC
Aircraft Owner Street Address --
Aircraft Owner City FAIRVIEW
Aircraft Owner State MT
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 592219347
Operator is an individual? Yes
Operator Name David Hardy
Operator Same as Owner? No
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? No
Operator Street Address --
Operator City FAIRVIEW
Operator State MT
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 592219347
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 Yes
Departure Airport Code 6S8
Departure City Laural
Departure State MT
Departure Country USA
Departure Time --
Departure Time Zone MST
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code 6S8
Destination City Laural
Destination State MT
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight --
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Feb 12 2014 1:50PM
User who most recently changed record jonp
Since inspection or accident Time of Accident
Event Location Runway Number and Location 22
Runway Length 5200
Runway Width 75
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --