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Runway excursion causing no damage followed a loss of control on landing by piper J3 student and instructor pilots.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 830831 |
| Time | |
| Date | 200904 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | J3 Cub |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 91 |
| Flight Phase | Landing |
| Flight Plan | None |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Wheels/Tires/Brakes |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Instructor Pilot Not Flying |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Flight Instructor Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) Flight Crew Multiengine |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 10 Flight Crew Total 13000 Flight Crew Type 120 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe Ground Event / Encounter Loss Of Aircraft Control Ground Excursion Runway |
Narrative:
Tailwheel tire had been aired up to recommended pressure prior to this flight. My student had done several 3-point landings without difficulty and she was attempting a wheel landing. She got a little bit of a swerve going on the landing; but it was not excessive. When the tailwheel was lowered to the runway; however; a very rapid shimmy occurred that caused there to be no traction on the tailwheel. I attempted to correct the problem with full application of rudder and a little power; and this stopped the swerve. We were too close to the edge of the runway at this time; however; and departed into the grass. No damage occurred to the aircraft or airport. While adding air to a tire does not usually call for a test flight; it might have been a help in this instance. Not allowing the student to get even a little bit out of shape on landing would have helped too; but with a correctly functioning tailwheel it would not have been a problem for either pilot to correct the swerve. It is very important that all equipment on the aircraft are in correct operating condition. The aircraft had been inspected on a couple of occasions for tailwheel shimmy problems and I thought it was under control.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: Runway excursion causing no damage followed a loss of control on landing by Piper J3 student and instructor pilots.
Narrative: Tailwheel tire had been aired up to recommended pressure prior to this flight. My student had done several 3-point landings without difficulty and she was attempting a wheel landing. She got a little bit of a swerve going on the landing; but it was not excessive. When the tailwheel was lowered to the runway; however; a very rapid shimmy occurred that caused there to be no traction on the tailwheel. I attempted to correct the problem with full application of rudder and a little power; and this stopped the swerve. We were too close to the edge of the runway at this time; however; and departed into the grass. No damage occurred to the aircraft or airport. While adding air to a tire does not usually call for a test flight; it might have been a help in this instance. Not allowing the student to get even a little bit out of shape on landing would have helped too; but with a correctly functioning tailwheel it would not have been a problem for either pilot to correct the swerve. It is very important that all equipment on the aircraft are in correct operating condition. The aircraft had been inspected on a couple of occasions for tailwheel shimmy problems and I thought it was under control.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.