# NTSB ANC02LA111: Cessna 185E, N7SR, Sparrevohn, AK, September 1, 2002

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report
- Date: August 31, 2002, 19:30 local (Sep 1, 2002, 03:30 UTC)
- Place: Sparrevohn, AK
- Coordinates: 61.80949, -161.439147 (estimated)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.8095&lon=-161.4391&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Highest injury: No injuries
- Injuries: 2 uninjured
- Status: Completed, report April 18, 2003
- Report: Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office
- Parties: FAA-AL-ANC FSDO 03
- NTSB case key (mKey): 55630
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC02LA111
- NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/55630/pdf
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC02LA111

## Probable cause

The pilot's selection of unsuitable terrain for landing that resulted in separation of the right main gear during the landing roll.  A factor in the accident was a rough/uneven gravel bar.

## Sequence of events

In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf).

- On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - roll
  - unsuitable terrain or takeoff/landing/taxi area - selected, pilot in command (cause)
  - terrain condition - rough/uneven (contributing factor)
  - landing gear,main gear attachment - overload

## Analysis

The private certificated pilot was landing a tundra tire-equipped airplane on a remote gravel bar.  During the landing roll, the right main landing gear tire struck a small berm about 300 feet after touchdown. The airplane veered to the right and struck a second berm.  The right main landing gear separated from the fuselage, and the airplane received damage to the right wing, right aileron, and the right elevator.

## Factual narrative

On August 31, 2002, about 1930 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire-equipped Cessna 185E airplane, N7SR, sustained substantial damage during landing on a remote gravel bar, when it struck a berm, about 55 miles northeast of Sparrevohn, Alaska.  The airplane was being operated as a Title 14, CFR Part 91 visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country personal flight when the accident occurred.  The airplane was operated by the pilot.  The private certificated pilot, and the sole passenger, were not injured.  Visual meteorological conditions prevailed.  The flight originated from an airstrip at Scott Lake, Wasilla, Alaska, about 1730.

On September 1, 2002, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) personnel notified the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), that the accident airplane pilot relayed a message via an over-flying airplane, indicating that the airplane was disabled on a gravel bar along the Stoney River.

On September 3, in a telephone conversation with the NTSB IIC, the pilot reported that during the landing roll on a gravel bar toward the northwest, the right main landing gear tire struck a small berm about 300 feet after touchdown. The airplane veered to the right and struck a second berm.  The right main landing gear separated from the fuselage, and the airplane received damage to the right wing, right aileron, and the right elevator.  The pilot indicated the gravel bar was about 1,000 feet long.

## Aircraft

- Registration: N7SR (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: Cessna 185E
- Category: Airplane
- Serial number: 1850968
- Airframe hours: 1674
- Engines: CONTINENTAL IO-470-F 260 horsepower reciprocating
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Flight: Personal, Part 91
- Registered owner: David Stott
- Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal
- Last inspection: Annual, October 26, 2000, 50 hours before
- Departed: WASILLA, AK
- Destination: SPARREVOHN, AK

## Flight crew

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

- Pilot; age 56; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review September 15, 1998; seat: left; flight hours: 1,022 total, 176 in this make and model

## Weather

- Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling: 2,000 ft overcast
- Temperature: 61 °F

## FAA reports on this event (1)

The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs).

- [Accident 20020831023419A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020831023419A), Aug 31, 2002: Cessna 185E, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) On 8/31/02 at approximately 1900HRS private pilot david stott lost control of N7SR a Cessna 185 aircraft when the right main gear struck a berm while…

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.

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