# NTSB ANC03LA069: Cessna 172, N63541, Seldovia, AK, July 4, 2003 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: July 4, 2003, 10:46 local (18:46 UTC) - Place: Seldovia, AK - Coordinates: 59.448612, -151.706665 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=59.4486&lon=-151.7067&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 3 uninjured - Status: Completed, report December 30, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: Anchorage FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 57413 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC03LA069 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/57413/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC03LA069 ## Probable cause The failure of company maintenance personnel to properly maintain the airplane's brake system, which resulted in a loss of the right brake during landing roll due to a chafed brake line. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Airframe/component/system failure/malfunction, landing - roll - brakes(normal) - not maintained, company maintenance personnel (cause) - landing gear,normal brake system - chafed (cause) - fluid,hydraulic - loss,total - landing gear,normal brake system - failure (cause) - Loss of control - on ground/water, landing - roll - directional control - not possible, pilot in command - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, landing - roll - terrain condition - downhill ## Analysis The private pilot was landing a wheel-equipped airplane on a 1,845-foot long by 60-foot wide, gravel-covered runway. During the landing roll, he applied heavy braking to slow the airplane. The pilot said as the airplane tracked down the centerline of the runway for about 900 feet, the right hand brake pedal "just went flat", and the airplane veered to the left, towards an occupied airplane that was stopped on an adjacent taxiway. When the brake pedals were released, the airplane realigned with the runway centerline. As the airplane neared the end of the runway, the pilot applied full left brake in an attempt to stop the airplane before reaching the end of the runway. The airplane veered sharply to the left, continued off the left side of the runway and down an embankment. The airplane's right wing struck the ground and sustained structural damage. A postaccident inspection revealed that a 6-inch section of the aluminum hydraulic brake line tubing, which is covered by the right main landing gear's fiberglass fairing assembly, had chafed through about mid-span between the fuselage and right wheel assembly. Additionally, no hydraulic brake fluid was found in the right hydraulic brake reservoir. Prior to the accident, and in accordance with the manufacturer's recommended inspection intervals, the operator would remove the fiberglass fairing assembly and inspect the aluminum hydraulic brake line tubing every 400 hours, or during the airplane's annual inspection. As a result of the accident, and due to the high hourly utilization of the rental/instruction airplanes in the operator's fleet, the operator now removes the fiberglass fairing assembly to inspect the aluminum hydraulic brake line tubing during each 100-hour inspection. ## Factual narrative On July 4, 2003, about 1046 Alaska daylight time, a wheel-equipped Cessna 172 airplane, N63541, sustained substantial damage when it departed the runway and encountered terrain during landing at the Seldovia Airport, Seldovia, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country personal flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The private pilot and two passengers were not injured. The airplane was operated by Take Flight Alaska, Inc., Anchorage, Alaska, and was rented by the pilot. The flight originated about 0915 from the Merrill Field Airport, Anchorage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a VFR flight plan was filed. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge on July 8, the pilot reported that just after landing on runway 16, he applied heavy braking to slow the airplane before reaching the end of the 1,845-foot long by 60-foot wide, gravel-covered runway. He said that as the airplane tracked down the centerline of the runway for about 900 feet, he noticed that the right hand brake pedal "just went flat." The airplane then veered to the left, towards an occupied Cessna 206 that was stopped on an adjacent taxiway. When the pilot released both brake pedals, the airplane realigned with the runway centerline. As the pilot attempted to stop the airplane, he used a combination of right rudder and the left brake. As the airplane neared the end of the runway, he applied full left brake in an attempt to stop the airplane before reaching the end of the runway. The airplane veered sharply to the left, continued off the left side of the runway and down an embankment. The airplane's right wing struck the ground and sustained structural damage. The operator reported that during a postaccident inspection of the accident airplane, maintenance crews removed the fiberglass fairing assembly that covers the right main landing gear strut. The inspection revealed that a 6-inch section of the aluminum hydraulic brake line tubing, which is covered by the fiberglass fairing assembly, had chafed through about mid-span between the fuselage and right wheel assembly. Additionally, no hydraulic brake fluid was found in the right hydraulic brake reservoir. According to the operator, the airplane had accumulated a total time in service of 16,200.2 hours. The airplane was maintained under a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved maintenance inspection program, and the most recent 100-hour inspection was accomplished on June 10, 2003, 56.1 hours before the accident. The last annual inspection was completed on November 18, 2002. After the accident airplane was ferried to the operator's maintenance facility in Anchorage, an FAA airworthiness inspector, from the Anchorage Flight Standards District Office, inspected the accident airplane, and reviewed the airplane's inspection and maintenance records. The FAA inspector reported that prior to the accident, and in accordance with the manufacturer's recommended inspection intervals, the operator would remove the fiberglass fairing assembly and inspect the aluminum hydraulic brake line tubing every 400 hours, or during the airplane's annual inspection. The FAA inspector added that following the accident, and due to the high hourly utilization of the rental/instruction airplanes in the operator's fleet, the operator now removes the fiberglass fairing assembly to inspect the aluminum hydraulic brake line tubing during each 100-hour inspection. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N63541](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N63541-2017-10-30), registration cancelled 2017-10-30, S/N 17275449, built 1981 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Cessna 172 - Registry model: [Cessna 172P](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-172p) (registry code 2072436) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17275449 - Airframe hours: 16200.2 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-D2J 150 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Take Flight Alaska, Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, June 10, 2003, 56.1 hours before - Departed: MRI, Anchorage, AK - Destination: SOV, Seldovia, AK - Flight plan: VFR - Airport: SOV, Seldovia, runway 16, 1,845 × 60 ft, gravel ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 36; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; last flight review May 29, 2003; seat: left; flight hours: 145 total, 42 in this make and model, 111 as pilot in command ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Temperature: 63 °F - Altimeter: 29.95 inHg ## 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 20030704037289A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030704037289A), Jul 4, 2003: Cessna 172P, Seldovia, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) During the landing roll out on runway 16 at Seldovia Airport the pilot applied brakes resulting in the aircraft yawing to the left. The pilot released… ## Other investigations on N63541 (2) 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 ANC16FA019](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC16FA019), Apr 20, 2016: Cessna 172 (N63541), Chugiak, AK, substantial damage, 4 fatal. Probable cause: The in-flight collision with one or more large birds (Bald Eagle), which resulted in a loss of airplane control. - [NTSB ANC91LA025](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC91LA025), Feb 7, 1991: Cessna 172-P (N63541), Anchorage, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE AIRPLANE DURING THE TAKEOFF ROLL. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE TERRAIN (SNOWBANK). 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.