What happened
On 26 December 2009, a Cessna 170A, registration ZS-PJD, was performing a private flight from East London Aerodrome to Port Alfred Aerodrome. The aircraft was carrying the pilot and three passengers. The flight proceeded without incident until the arrival at Port Alfred.
During the landing sequence on the grass runway 28L, the pilot initially made contact with the main landing gear. However, as the tail wheel touched the runway surface, the aircraft experienced a sudden loss of directional control. The aircraft entered a ground loop to the right, rotating toward the direction from which it had approached. This maneuver caused the left main landing gear to detach from the airframe, the left wing tip to strike the ground, and the propeller blades to impact the runway surface. Despite the impact, there were no injuries to the pilot or the three passengers.
The investigation
SACAA AIID examined the circumstances surrounding the loss of control. The investigation confirmed that the pilot held a valid commercial license and was properly rated for the aircraft type. The aircraft was found to be in a serviceable condition, having been maintained by an approved maintenance organization, with no recorded defects prior to the event.
Meteorological data indicated favorable flying conditions with high visibility, though a crosswind of 250° at 10 knots was present from the left during the landing. The investigation also noted that the pilot had relatively limited experience on this specific type, with only 7.3 hours logged on the tail-wheel aircraft.