Accident Overview
On June 16, 2000, at approximately 21:15 local time, a Piper PA-18-150 aircraft sustained substantial damage after a loss of control during landing at Valencia Airport. The aircraft, registration EC-DLM, was manufactured in 1953. Both occupants—the pilot and one passenger—were uninjured.
Aircraft and Crew
The aircraft was a Piper PA-18-150, powered by a single Lycoming O-320-A engine. The pilot held a commercial pilot license and had accumulated 245 total flight hours, with only 15 hours on the accident aircraft type, which is a taildragger configuration.
Sequence of Events
The flight originated from Castellón Aerodrome at approximately 20:15 local time under VFR. The pilot contacted Valencia Tower, which cleared the aircraft to land on Runway 30. After touchdown, the aircraft began veering left. It then spun around, collapsing the right main landing gear. The right wing struck the pavement, but no fire occurred. The aircraft came to rest on the left side of Runway 30 near the intersection with taxiway B, temporarily suspending operations. Emergency services removed the aircraft within about 25 minutes, after which the runway was reopened.
Investigation and Analysis
Post-accident inspection of flight controls and brakes revealed no malfunctions. Meteorological conditions were good, with calm winds and CAVOK reported in METARs at 18:30, 19:00, 19:30, and 20:00 UTC. The investigation concluded that weather was not a factor. Analysis indicated that the accident was caused by incorrect piloting, specifically the pilot's limited experience on this taildragger type, which requires greater skill in directional control during ground operations compared to tricycle-gear aircraft.
Probable Cause
The probable cause is the pilot's limited experience on this type of aircraft.