Accident Details
A certificated private pilot reported that he departed his home airport for a local area flight in a conventional landing gear airplane. Upon returning, he obtained the current ATIS information, which reported winds from 270 degrees at 8 knots, and that landing runway 21 was in use. The pilot contacted the tower and was cleared to land. Tower personnel notified the pilot that the runway was icy with braking conditions reported as fair.
Pilot Actions
The pilot landed with full flaps at an airspeed of about 55 knots. He configured the airplane in a right slip with the right wing low to compensate for the crosswind. The right wheel touched down first, followed by the left wheel. At that point, the airplane began to turn right of the centerline. The pilot applied left rudder and brakes, but the airplane lost traction on the ice. He subsequently applied left aileron, and the left wing struck the ground. The airplane slid off the runway and came to rest on its nose in a snow bank. In the recommendation section of his report, the pilot suggested using a wheel landing in icy conditions to maintain control authority of the tail surfaces.
Runway Conditions
According to airport personnel, on the day of the accident, the temperature was below freezing with winds about 6 knots from the southwest. They reported that the runway centerline was clear and dry. A NOTAM had been issued advising that braking was fair with patches of ice. An airport operations person interviewed by the NTSB noted that there were skid marks on the runway prior to where the airplane ran off, and that there was no ice on the runway at the accident location. The pilot and a pilot-rated passenger commented to airport personnel that they believed the airplane had been caught by a crosswind gust and that the pilot had ground looped the airplane. Additional airport personnel overheard the pilot and passenger discussing how they might have avoided the ground loop.
Investigation Findings
The pilot reported no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine prior to the accident. The airplane sustained structural damage to the left wing. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector reported that runway conditions were clear and dry on the day of the accident. Examination of the runway surface revealed impact marks from the left wing and marks from the airplane's left main tire. The marks were slightly off center and arced to the right toward the snow bank where the airplane came to rest.