Incident Overview
On November 16, 2016, at approximately 1525 eastern standard time, a Rutan Defiant experimental aircraft, registration N770JL, sustained substantial damage during a landing accident at Morristown Municipal Airport, Morristown, New Jersey. The pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight was conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight.
Flight History
The aircraft departed South Bend International Airport (SBN), South Bend, Indiana, around 1200. The pilot reported an uneventful flight until touchdown on runway 23, at which point the nose landing gear collapsed unexpectedly. The airplane veered to the right and came to rest on the pavement on the right side of runway 23, just beyond the intersection with taxiway G.
Aircraft Information
The accident airplane was a centerline-thrust, twin-engine canard design. It featured a rudder mounted on the bottom of the fuselage to the left of the nose landing gear. The main landing gear was fixed, while the nose wheel landing gear was retractable, actuated by a single-stroke mechanism that locked in either the up or down position.
Damage and Examination
Postaccident examination revealed damage to the front propeller, the bottom of the front engine cowling, the front engine tailpipe, and the rudder. Inspection of the nose landing gear system showed that the bottom of the down lock was worn and beveled. When the nose gear was extended, the bottom of the down lock contacted the pivot shaft in the area of the centerline, rather than below it as intended. Drawings of the assembly indicated that the down lock should extend past the centerline of the pivot shaft.
Maintenance and Records
According to Federal Aviation Administration and aircraft maintenance records, the airplane was issued a special airworthiness certificate in 2003. The most recent conditional inspection was completed on January 16, 2016. At the time of the accident, the aircraft had accumulated approximately 1,075.6 total flight hours and 1,338 landings.