- Date
- September 26, 2000, 16:45 local (Sep 27, 2000, 00:45 UTC)
- Place
- Wasilla, AK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N7099YPiper PA-18
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 18, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 20000927041909A
- Case key
- 50997
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the takeoff roll. A factor associated with the accident was the presence of tall brush alongside the runway.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot said that he normally sets 10 degrees of flaps prior to takeoff. He stated that he applied full power, and then noticed he had not deployed the flaps. He indicated he removed his left hand from the throttle and reached down with his left hand for the flap handle. The right wing contacted brush along the narrow airstrip, and the airplane swerved to the right, into trees. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings, and the fuselage. The pilot stated he lives nearby, and normally operates from this airstrip.
Factual narrative
On September 26, 2000, at 1645 Alaska daylight time, a Piper PA-18 tundra tire equipped airplane, N7099Y, sustained substantial damage when it struck brush and trees during takeoff from an airstrip between Seymour Lake, and Visnaw Lake, in Wasilla, Alaska. The private pilot and sole passenger on board were not injured. The personal flight was being conducted under 14 CFR Part 91, and was departing for Lake Clark Pass, Alaska for a hunting trip. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan was filed.
The pilot told the NTSB investigator-in-charge during a telephone interview on September 28, that he normally selects 10 degrees of flaps prior to takeoff. He stated that he applied full power, and then noticed he had not deployed the flaps. He indicated he removed his left hand from the throttle and reached down with his left hand for the flap handle. The right wing contacted brush along the narrow airstrip, and the airplane swerved right, into trees. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings, and the fuselage. The pilot stated he lives nearby, and normally operates from this airstrip.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7099Y
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-8135
- Airframe hours
- 3,441
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Gene Chambers
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 25, 2000 · 103 hours before
- Destination
- Lake Clark Pass, AK
- Airport
- Seymour Lake Airstrip, runway 36, gravel
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 68
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 1,700 total · 1,000 in this make and model · 1,550 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Observed at
- IYS, 5 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N7099Y · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.