PVT PLT OF A HOME BUILT LANCAIR 360 LOST CTL IN GUSTY TURBULENT XWIND CONDITION DURING LNDG AND BOUNCED ONTO THE RWY BREAKING OFF THE L MAIN WHEEL AND BENDING AND PUSHING THE R MAIN GEAR STRUT UP THROUGH THE WING. A GAR WAS MADE AND SUBSEQUENT GEAR UP LNDG.

Date: 1996-12 · Aircraft: Amateur/Home Built/Experimental

Anomalies: inflight-event-encounter-loss-of-aircraft-control|inflight-event-encounter-weather-turbulence|other-unspecified

Synopsis

PVT PLT OF A HOME BUILT LANCAIR 360 LOST CTL IN GUSTY TURBULENT XWIND CONDITION DURING LNDG AND BOUNCED ONTO THE RWY BREAKING OFF THE L MAIN WHEEL AND BENDING AND PUSHING THE R MAIN GEAR STRUT UP THROUGH THE WING. A GAR WAS MADE AND SUBSEQUENT GEAR UP LNDG.

Narrative

UPON APCH TO LAS VEGAS AREA FROM KINGMAN; AZ; WE ENTERED AREA VIA JEAN; NV; SW OF LAS VEGAS. EXPERIENCED MODERATE TO SEVERE TURB WHILE FLYING UNDER CLASS B AIRSPACE. APPROX 15 MI OUT FROM VGT; N LAS VEGAS ARPT; I CALLED VGT TWR AND TOLD THEM I WAS UNFAMILIAR WITH VGT. THEY CLRED ME TO RWY 12; R BASE APCH. WIND WAS RPTED 200 DEGS AT 25+/- KTS; AS I RECALL. WIND HAD BEEN VARIABLE 120-200 DEGS. ON ENTERING BASE LEG; ARPT LAYOUT WAS DIFFICULT TO SEE; VERY LOW CONTRAST TO SURROUNDING GND. (I SHOULD HAVE OVERFLOWN ARPT PRIOR TO ENTERING PATTERN.) I PASSED THROUGH EXTENDED CTRLINE OF RWY 12 AND MADE A 270 DEG BACK TO FINAL AT THE REQUEST OF TWR. UPON ENTERING FINAL FOR RWY 12 THE XWIND FOR RWY 12 WAS QUITE STRONG ALTHOUGH NO SIGNIFICANT TURB. I ESTABLISHED A FORWARD SLIP ON FINAL AND WAS ABLE TO CORRECT FOR XWIND BUT WAS NEAR LIMIT OF ACFT. FULL RUDDER DEFLECTION. FINAL SPD WAS 105- 110 MPH APPROX (STALL 63); 1/2 DEG FLAPS BECAUSE OF HIGH WIND. AT APPROX 40 FT AGL OVER THE NUMBERS WHILE EVALUATING XWIND AND READY TO GAR AND REQUEST RWY 25 WHICH ONLY HAD 30 DEG XWIND; I EXPERIENCED TURB WHICH INSTANTANEOUSLY SLAMMED THE ACFT TO THE RWY BREAKING OFF L MAIN GEAR ABOVE THE WHEEL AND BENDING R GEAR STRUT UPPER PIVOT AND PUSHING IT UP THROUGH R STUB WING. I HAD ADDED FULL PWR AND WE BOUNCED BACK INTO THE AIR AND CLBED OUT. TWR INFORMED ME WE HAD LOST A WHEEL. WE SUCCESSFULLY RETRACTED REMAINING LNDG GEAR. CIRCLED ARPT UNTIL EMER EQUIP COULD BE BROUGHT FROM COUNTY FIRE DEPT; 10 TO 15 MIN ESTIMATE. WE SUBSEQUENTLY MADE A SUCCESSFUL GEAR UP LNDG ON RWY 25 WITH LITTLE ADDITIONAL DAMAGE TO ACFT. IN TALKING WITH LCL PLTS IT WAS COMMON KNOWLEDGE THAT RWY 12 NORMALLY EXPERIENCES TURB UNDER SUCH WIND CONDITIONS. THE TWR SHOULD NOT HAVE INSISTED ON RWY 12 OR RATHER SHOULD HAVE RECOMMENDED RWY 25 TO AN ACFT NOT FAMILIAR WITH LCL CONDITIONS. SAFETY SHOULD BE FOREMOST IN THEIR MINDS. ON MY PART; I SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE INSISTENT OR ASSERTIVE REGARDING PROPER RWY. TURB IS NOT AS MUCH A PROB ON RWY 25 BECAUSE THERE ARE NO ARPT BUILDINGS ADJACENT TO RWY AS ON RWY 12.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.