What happened
A certificated airline transport pilot was operating an on-demand air taxi flight into a remote airport. The selected runway measured 4,100 feet in length and 120 feet in width, featuring an uphill gradient of 7.1 percent.
At the time of the landing, a tailwind of 20 knots was present, with gusts reaching 24 knots. As the pilot was performing the landing flare approximately 3 feet above the runway surface, he encountered a gust of wind or wind shear. This resulted in an aerodynamic stall, causing the aircraft to contact the runway with significant force on the main landing gear.
Following the incident, the pilot conducted an initial inspection and reported no visible damage. However, during a subsequent inspection the following day, it was discovered that the tail skid and the aft tie-down ring, located on the underside of the tail cone, had been broken off. The aircraft also sustained damage to the adjacent fuselage structure and the aft empennage bulkhead. There were no injuries reported.
Findings
The investigation determined that the impact with the runway caused structural damage to the aft section of the aircraft, including the breakage of the tail skid and tie-down ring.