Amateur-built VANS RV-8 accident near Sheridan, Wyoming, June 22, 2011
On June 22, 2011 at about 11:30 pm local time, a amateur-built VANS RV-8, registered N4546Y, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Sheridan, Wyoming (Sheridan County airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate directional control during the landing roll.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 22, 2011 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Sheridan, Wyoming · Sheridan County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VANS RV-8
- Registration
- N4546Y · registry record · serial 81168
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane checked the weather prior to landing and noted a light right crosswind. He performed an uneventful approach with an extended downwind segment. He selected full flaps and performed a slip maneuver during the final approach. Just after the main landing gear made contact with the runway, the airplane began to drift to the left. He countered with successively harder right rudder pedal inputs, and the airplane began to swerve to the right. The airplane veered across the runway and into the grass beside the runway. As the tailwheel touched the ground, the pilot applied left rudder pedal pressure, and the airplane veered left, reentered the runway, and came to rest on a heading almost opposite the landing direction. Postaccident examination revealed evidence, including damage to the outer rim of the right wheel and the fuselage at the right landing gear attach point, indicative of excessive side loading during landing.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Loss of control on ground during landing (landing roll) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 1,235 hours in all; 280 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 975 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: January 10, 2011
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 350 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, October 7, 2010; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 1K8 Ketchum OK at 5:15 pm
- Destination: SHR Sheridan WY
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 05, 5,039 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.98 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 pm from SHR
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.