20111111027119A

Accident · Substantial damage

FAA accident report · Cessna 180 · Eau Claire, WI · November 11, 2011

Date: November 11, 2011 · 19:15 local
Place: Eau Claire, WI
Phase of flight: Landing: Rollout
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Substantial damage
Aircraft: N3606C
NTSB investigation: NTSBCEN12LA060
Reported as: Cessna 180
Reported engine: Continental O-470 series
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours: 940 total900 in this make and model6 in the last 90 days

N3606CRegistered now · Cessna 180S/N 31104 · Built 1954 Airframe modelCessna 180 Engine modelContinental O-470 seriesReciprocating

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

Pilot had not obtained a weather brief or performed any pre-flight planning. Pilot is seriously confused and denies having flown into the keau airport earlier that day. Did not remember any airports where he had been. Experienced a generator failure sometime after landing at his third airport. Could not locate any airport after over an hour of flight. He had just been to rice lake airport and had been at the keau airport earlier that afternoon. He elected to land on a road 2 miles from keau airport at which time aircraft was substantially damaged.

As the FAA filed it

PILOT HAD NOT OBTAINED A WEATHER BRIEF OR PERFORMED ANY PRE-FLIGHT PLANNING. PILOT IS SERIOUSLY CONFUSED AND DENIES HAVING FLOWN INTO THE KEAU AIRPORT EARLIER THAT DAY. DID NOT REMEMBER ANY AIRPORTS WHERE HE HAD BEEN. EXPERIENCED A GENERATOR FAILURE SOMETIME AFTER LANDING AT HIS THIRD AIRPORT. COULD NOT LOCATE ANY AIRPORT AFTER OVER AN HOUR OF FLIGHT. HE HAD JUST BEEN TO RICE LAKE AIRPORT AND HAD BEEN AT THE KEAU AIRPORT EARLIER THAT AFTERNOON. HE ELECTED TO LAND ON A ROAD 2 MILES FROM KEAU AIRPORT AT WHICH TIME AIRCRAFT WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.

NTSB CEN12LA060Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal reportEau Claire, WIThe pilot’s disorientation during a night flight, which resulted in an off-airport landing, and his inadequate directional control during the landing roll. Contributing to the accident was the loss of the airplane’s electrical system power.Nov 12, 2011 · Substantial damage