Following a day visual meteorological condition flight, during the landing roll, two deer jumped onto the runway at the airport in Climax, N.C. The pilot swerved the Cessna 120 to the right off of the runway, avoiding both deer.
During the runway excursion, the right main landing gear became caught in tall grass and the airplane nosed over.
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, vertical stabilizer, and both wings.
During a post-accident interview with the airport manager, he reported the airport does not a have a perimeter fence.
Probable cause: An evasive maneuver during the landing roll to avoid deer on the runway, which resulted in a runway excursion and a nose over. Contributing to the accident was the lack of an airport perimeter fence.
NTSB Identification: GAA16CA304
This June 2016 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
