# Accident 19990914027689A: Cessna A185F, Delta Junction, AK, September 14, 1999 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: September 14, 1999, 16:30 local time - Place: Delta Junction, AK - Airport: Rockstad'S - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Roll-Out (Fixed Wing) - Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135) - Operator: EQDA - Location: 63.7000° N, 144.8898° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=63.7000&lon=-144.8898&mi=10 - Aircraft: N85LC, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N85LC) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna A185F (registry code 2072821, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-a185f) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Continental IO-520 series (registry code 17032, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-520-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA A185F - Reported engine: CONT IO520D - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 26,728 total, 9,320 in this make and model, 304 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB ANC99LA145](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC99LA145) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990914027689A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. .19) ON SEPTEMBER 14, 1999, ABOUT 1630 ALASKA DAYLIGHT TIME, A WHEEL EQUIP PED CESSNA 185 AIRPLANE, N85LC, SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE DURING LANDING AT A REMOTE AIRSTRIP ABOUT 38 MILES SOUTHWEST OF DELTA JUNCTION, ALASKA, AT LATITUDE 63 DEGREES, 52.78 MINUTES NORTH, AND LONGITUDE 147 DEGREES, 08.8 MINUTES WEST. THE AIRPLANE WAS BEING OPERATED AS A VISUAL FLIGHT RULES (VFR) ON-DEMAND PASSENGER FLIGHT UNDER TITLE 14 CFR PART 135 WHEN THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED. THE AIRPLANE WAS OPERATED BY TAMARACK AIR LTD., FAIRBANKS, ALASKA. THE AIRLINE TRANSPORT CERTIFICATED PILOT, AND ONE PASSENGER RECEIVED MINOR INJURIES; THE REMAINING PASSENGER WAS NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED. VFR COMPANY FLIGHT FOLLOWING PROCEDURES WERE IN EFFECT. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT THE FAIRBANKS INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, FAIRBANKS, ALASKA, ABOUT 1550. DURING A TELEPHONE CONVERSATION WITH THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD (NTSB) INVESTIGATOR-IN-CHARGE (IIC), ON SEPTEMBER 14, 1999, THE PILOT SAID HE WAS LANDING AT AN AIRSTRIP NEAR A CABIN. THE AIRSTRIP IS ORIENTED IN A NORTHEAST/SOUTHWEST DIRECTION, AND HAS BEEN USED BY THE PILOT IN THE PAST. IT IS ABOUT 1,200 FEET LONG, AND ABOUT 12 FEET WIDE. THE PILOT SAID HE LANDED TOWARD THE NORTHEAST WITH A HEAD WIND OF ABOUT 10 KNOTS. NEAR THE END OF THE LANDING ROLL, THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR STRUT FRACTURED ABOVE THE LEFT WHEEL AXLE. THE REMAINING OUTBOARD ORTION OF THE GEAR STRUT DUG INTO THE GROUND, AND THE AIRPLANE NOSED OVER. THE AIRPLANE RECEIVED DAMAGE TO THE RIGHT WING, PROPELLER, THE VERTICAL STABILIZER, AND THE RUDDER. (.4) THE AIRLINE TRANSPORT CERTIFICATED PILOT WAS LANDING A TAILWHEEL EQUIPPED AIRPLANE ON AN AIRSTRIP NEAR A REMOTE CABIN ON AN ON-DEMAND AIR TAXI FLIGHT. THE AIRSTRIP HAD BEEN USED BY THE PILOT IN THE PAST. NEAR THE END OF THE LANDING ROLL, THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR STRUT FRACTURED ABOVE THE LEFT WHEEL AXLE. THE WHEEL AND THE LOWER END OF THE GEAR STRUT SEPARATED FROM THE AIRPLANE. THE UPPER PORTION OF THE GEAR STRUT DUG INTO THE GROUND, AND THE AIRPLANE NOSED OVER. THE AIRPLANE RECEIVED DAMAGE TO THE RIGHT WING, PROPELLER, THE VERTICAL STABILIZER, AND THE RUDDER. THE LOWER END OF THE GEAR STRUT HAS FOUR HOLES DRILLED THROUGH THE METAL TO FACILITATE THE INSTALLATION OF THE WHEEL AXLE AND BRAKE ASSEMBLY. AN EXAMINATION OF THE LANDING GEAR STRUT FOUND AREAS OF CRACKING, TYPICAL OF FATIGUE, EMANATING FROM THE INBOARD EDGE OF THE FORWARD, UPPER BOLT HOLE. ONE CRACK DEVELOPED IN AN AREA OF TWO SMALL CORROSION PITS IN THE DRILLED HOLE. A SECOND CRACK DEVELOPED IN AN AREA OF THE FILLET BETWEEN THE DRILLED HOLE, AND THE INBOARD SURFACE OF THE STRUT. THE CRACKS FROM THE TWO AREAS COMBINED TO FORM ONE CRACK LATERALLY ACROSS THE STRUT AND THROUGH THE AFT, UPPER BOLT HOLE. THE INTERIOR SURFACES OF THE FORWARD, UPPER BOLT HOLE AND FILLET REGIONS WERE PITTED, CONSISTENT WITH THE EFFECTS OF CORROSION. NEITHER THE MANUFACTURER NOR THE FAA, HAVE ESTABLISHED A LIFE LIMIT (HOURS OR CYCLES) FOR THE MAIN LANDING GEAR STRUT. AN ANNUAL INSPECTION DOES NOT REQUIRE DISASSEMBLY OF THE AXLE FROM THE GEAR STRUT. NO INSPECTION PROCEDURES, OTHER THAN A GENERAL VISUAL INSPECTION OF THE LANDING GEAR, HAVE BEEN SPECIFIED BY THE MANUFACTURER, OR THE FAA.(-23)DURING LANDING ROLL OUT THE LEFT GEAR LEG SHEARED OFF THROUGH THE TWO UPPER BOLT HOLES THAT ARE USED TO ATTACH THE AXLE TO THE GEAR LEG. THE AIRCRAFT DUG INTO THE DIRT ON THE LEFT SIDE CAUSING THE AIRPLANE TO NOSE OVER ONTO ITS BACK. ## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB ANC99LA145](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC99LA145), Sep 15, 1999: Cessna 185F (N85LC), Delta Junction, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: Corrosion and a fatigue failure of the lower end of the landing gear strut. Factors in the accident were the manufacturer's and the FAA's insufficient standards/requirements for life limits and… From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.