Flight Crew Commercial
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 40; Flight Crew Total 800; Flight Crew Type 50
Other / Unknown
Ground Event / Encounter Ground Strike - Aircraft; Ground Event / Encounter Loss Of Aircraft Control
Aircraft Aircraft Damaged
Weather; Human Factors
I was flying the aircraft for a 'comedy' air show demonstration; in which the airplane is operated as if the pilot has never flown an aircraft before. This naturally involves atypical; erratic maneuvering both on the ground and in the air. The departure and flight portion of the act was normal. After landing and during taxi up toward the fence separating crowd from taxi area; I kept the tail off the ground (this is a tail dragger aircraft); taxiing on only the main gear; maintaining moderate throttle and some braking pressure. I made a turn to align the aircraft to the fence; slowing and positioning the airplane with a tailwind. As I neared a stop; the airplane pitched down excessively; rocking forward on the main gear. I reached full up elevator control and realized I had no further control to prevent a prop strike. I lowered the throttle to idle and turned off the magnetos very near the moment the prop struck the ground. The airplane pivoted up; 'standing' on the two main wheels and the propeller. I remained seated throughout the event and was uninjured. There was no undue safety hazard to those on the ground. During the performance; the wind speed had increased. Prior to takeoff; the winds were low enough as to cause no impact to my performance; even with the planned parking with a slight tailwind. Evidently; the wind got worse while I was in flight (about 8 minutes) and I wasn't able to determine that from the visible flags as I approached the parking position. Additionally; I was taxiing with the tail somewhat higher than normal; leaving the airplane more susceptible to impact from tailwinds. Finally; it's a normal part of the act that the ground crew grabs the tail to lower it manually to the ground while I sit stationary; but in this case; some crew grabbed the wing tip and pulled down. Video suggests this may have contributed to the unarrestable pitch-down; as these occurred simultaneously.It should be understood that; as a comedy airshow performance; typical tail dragger taxi best practices; such as pinning the tail to the ground; taxiing slowly with specific control surface deflections per wind; etc.; are deliberately not always followed. Frequent practice in all conditions generally allows uneventful operation of the airplane in nonstandard taxi operations; but the nature of the act does leave the aircraft more susceptible to environmental changes than usual.I did not adequately perceive the worsening wind conditions and therefore did not adjust my taxi-up plan accordingly. In the moment of the pitchover; I did not act quickly enough to release the brakes; which may have arrested the pitchover and prevented the mishap. While I've always known intuitively this would be the best course of action; I was unable to perform this action in the actual moment; which probably lasted 2 seconds or less. I also feel that I did not give myself enough time to mentally prepare for the act; spending too much time in the audience; and could have been better focused.In the future; I will pay closer attention to the windsock and flags at the end of the act to ensure winds have not worsened since takeoff. On windy days; I will also make it a point to taxi with the tail lower; or in extreme cases; omit the tail-up taxiing entirely; and park with the nose into the wind if necessary. I will also make it a point to brief myself on contingency actions prior to flight; if I run out of pitch-up authority while taxiing; I will release the brakes immediately. I will also give myself more time prior to flight to get focused and ready.
Pilot reported that a tailwind during an air show demonstration resulted in a prop strike.