# NTSB ANC03LA052: Cessna 185, N70162, Fairbanks, AK, May 29, 2003 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 28, 2003, 18:45 local (May 29, 2003, 02:45 UTC) - Place: Fairbanks, AK - Coordinates: 64.837501, -147.61444 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=64.8375&lon=-147.6144&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report November 25, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: FAA-AL-FAI FSDO 01 - NTSB case key (mKey): 57080 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC03LA052 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/57080/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC03LA052 ## Probable cause The pilot's inadequate compensation for a crosswing during the landing roll. A factor contribuiting to the accident was the presence of a crosswind. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - weather condition - crosswind (contributing factor) - compensation for wind conditions - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - aborted - terrain condition - runway ## Analysis The airline transport certificated pilot was performing a full stop landing in a tailwheel and tundra tire-equipped airplane with a 15-knot right quartering crosswind. The pilot reported that during the landing, as the tailwheel touched the runway, the right wing began to rise. He added engine power to abort the landing, but the left wing struck the runway as the airplane became airborne. The pilot then performed an uneventful landing. An examination of the left wing disclosed damage to the outboard left wing rib, and the outboard left aileron rib. ## Factual narrative On May 28, 2003, about 1845 Alaska daylight time, a tailwheel and tundra tire-equipped Cessna 185 airplane, N70162, sustained substantial damage when the left wing struck the runway surface during an aborted landing at the Fort Wainwright Army Airfield, Fairbanks, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) local area orientation flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The airplane was operated by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of Aviation Services. The airline transport certificated pilot, and the sole passenger, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and VFR company flight following procedures were in effect. The flight originated at the Fort Wainwright Airfield about 1750. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), was notified of the accident on May 29, by an air safety investigator with the Office of Aviation Services. He reported that the pilot was conducting an area orientation flight for the passenger. The investigator said the pilot was performing a crosswind landing on runway 24 at Fort Wainwright with full flaps. During the landing, as the tailwheel touched the runway, the right wing began to rise. The pilot added engine power to abort the landing, but the left wing struck the runway as the airplane became airborne. The pilot then performed an uneventful landing. The airplane was examined by maintenance personnel from Fairbanks. The examination disclosed damage to the outboard left wing rib, and the outboard left aileron rib. At 1855, an Aviation Routine Weather Report (METAR) at Fort Wainwright was reporting, in part: Wind, 330 degrees (true) at 15 knots; visibility, 13 statute miles; clouds and sky condition, few at 8,000 feet, 20,000 feet scattered; temperature, 66 degrees F; dew point, 35 degrees F; altimeter, 29.77 inHg. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N70162](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N70162), registered now, S/N 18502028, built 1972 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 185 - Registry model: [Cessna A185E](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-a185e) (registry code 2072818) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental IO-520 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-520-series) (registry code 17032, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18502028 - Engines: CONTINENTAL IO-520D 300 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Other work use, Part 91 - Operator: Bureau Of Land Management - Registered owner: U.S. Department Of The Interior - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, January 2, 2003, 70 hours before - Departed: PAFB, FAIRBANKS, AK - Destination: PAFB - Flight plan: Company VFR - Airport: PAFB, Wainwright Aaf, runway 24, 8,570 × 150 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 43; injuries: none; airline transport, commercial, flight instructor; airplane ratings: single-engine sea, single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review April 30, 2003; seat: left; flight hours: 4,500 total, 12 in this make and model, 4,250 as pilot in command, 33 in the last 90 days, 24 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 305° at 15 knots - Visibility: 13 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 66 °F, dew point 36 °F - Altimeter: 29.77 inHg - Observed at: PAFB ## 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 20030528013029A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030528013029A), May 28, 2003: Cessna A185E, Ft Wainwright, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) NTSB #ANC03LA052 [privacy data omitted] after completing two touch and go landings at the bradley field in north pole, the department of forestry/blm… 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. --- 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.