Accident Overview
On January 30, 1964, a Piper Cub J3C aircraft, registration HB-OXP, was involved in an accident at Altenrhein airfield in the canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland. The incident occurred during the landing roll-out when a landing gear strut broke. The aircraft was on a hard frozen, bumpy grass runway at the time.
Investigation Findings
The official investigation determined that the strut failure was probably caused by overstress of a part that had already been weakened by corrosion damage. The two occupants of the aircraft were uninjured. The aircraft itself sustained damage.
Conclusion
The accident was attributed to the structural failure of a landing gear component due to pre-existing corrosion combined with the forces encountered during the landing roll-out on the uneven, frozen grass surface.