NTSB Factual Report

The pilot reported that, during the landing flare, the airplane "lurched to the left of the runway, yawed to the right, and nosed down". He added that, as he corrected the airplane parallel with the runway centerline, the airplane "immediately dropped" to the ground and it felt like a "hard landing". He continued the landing roll, taxied clear of the runway, and did a brief check from inside of the airplane for damage. Subsequently, he did not note anything abnormal, and proceeded to fly back to the departure airport without further incident.

A postflight examination revealed that the airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage.

The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

The pilot further reported that he believed that a tailwind gust may have been responsible for the sideways lurch, and that the airplane may have stalled resulting in the nose pitching down and the hard landing.

A commercial weather reporting station for the town, about 3 miles from the accident airport, reported about the time of the accident that the sky was clear, and the wind was southwest at 5 knots. The pilot landed runway 17.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain a proper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing.