On March 20, 2004, a Bellanca 7GCBC (registration N90076) was involved in an aviation accident near Marion, MT. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll. Contributing factors were the gust of wind and the snowbank. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
A tailwheel aircraft drifted left on landing, then veered right after rudder input, departing the runway and impacting a snowbank before nosing over. Another pilot reported a gust of wind from the right rear.
Accident Details
The pilot of a tailwheel-equipped aircraft landed on a paved runway after observing calm wind conditions indicated by the windsock. Following touchdown, the aircraft began to drift to the left. The pilot applied right rudder to correct, but the aircraft then veered sharply to the right, departing the runway surface.
Sequence of Events
The aircraft subsequently struck a snowbank adjacent to the runway, causing it to nose over. The pilot reported that another aircraft, which was circling above, informed him that his aircraft had been hit by a gust of wind from the right rear. No other information was provided regarding injuries, damage extent, or environmental conditions beyond the reported wind gust.