Amateur/Home Built/Experimental
Flight Crew Private
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 20; Flight Crew Total 1050; Flight Crew Type 60
Time Pressure; Situational Awareness; Distraction; Troubleshooting; Workload
Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Ground Excursion Runway
Aircraft Aircraft Damaged; General Evacuated
Aircraft
Immediately upon touching down on the grass portion of the west end of the runway the left MLG brake began dragging; as captured in photographs; and the aircraft began to veer left. Fifty yards later the aircraft rolled onto the asphalt portion of the runway and the dragging brake veered the airplane even further left on a trajectory off the paved portion. The downward slope of the shoulder was water saturated soft grass and the left MLG tire sank into it and added further yaw forces. Full right braking was ineffective to arrest the veering trajectory and the aircraft departed the runway; rolled on the grass shoulder for 100 yards and finally stopped when the NLG drag brace collapsed and the propellor dug in over a swath of 50 ft. While removing the aircraft with a tractor the left MLG brake continued to drag.No casualties; including to pilot; and no property damage occurred. Since it did not meet the reporting criteria neither a NTSB or FAA report was filed. Damage to the airplane consists of collapsed NLG assembly; bent propeller blades; unknown internal engine component damage.Cause of incident: left main landing gear brake lockup Cause of brake lockup: TBD
Pilot reported the left main brake seized during landing. The aircraft departed the runway and the aircraft was damaged with no injuries.