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2012 Maule M-4 Ground Loop at Springfield Municipal Airport (N12026)

Springfield, MN, United States

On July 10, 2012, a MAULE M-4 (registration N12026) was involved in an aviation accident near Springfield, MN. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The tailwheel spring's overload failure during landing, resulting in a ground loop and runway excursion. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 2026-09-03Data APIEditorial standards

A Maule M-4, N12026, ground looped during a landing at Springfield Municipal Airport, Minnesota, on July 10, 2012. A broken tailwheel leaf spring was found, and the pilot and instructor were uninjured.

Incident Overview and Flight Details On July 10, 2012, at approximately 1545 central daylight time, a Maule M-4, registration N12026, experienced a ground loop while landing on runway 31 at Springfield Municipal Airport (D42), near Springfield, Minnesota. The runway was 3,400 feet by 75 feet of dry asphalt. The aircraft was registered to a private individual and operated by a private pilot under 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 as a personal flight. A flight instructor was aboard as a passenger. The flight originated from New Ulm Municipal Airport (ULM) at about 1410 under day visual flight rules conditions, without a VFR flight plan. Both occupants were uninjured, but the left wing sustained substantial damage.

Contributing factors

Nose/tail landing gear — Failure
Structural failure

Related events

Same aircraft family

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