# NTSB ANC05TA126: Piper PA-18-150, N13833, Cold Foot, AK, August 20, 2005 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Final report - Date: August 20, 2005, 14:00 local (22:00 UTC) - Place: Cold Foot, AK - Coordinates: 68.230003, -148.713333 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=68.2300&lon=-148.7133&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report February 28, 2006 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: Fairbanks FSDO-01 - NTSB case key (mKey): 62291 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC05TA126 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/62291/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC05TA126 ## Probable cause The pilot's selection of unsuitable terrain for landing, which resulted in the airplane nosing down during the landing roll. A factor associated with the accident was the rough and uneven terrain. ## 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 - terrain condition - rough/uneven (contributing factor) - unsuitable terrain or takeoff/landing/taxi area - selected, pilot in command (cause) - Nose down, landing - roll ## Analysis The commercial pilot was conducting a 14 CFR Part 91 public use flight, and was landing the tundra tire-equipped, tailwheel airplane on an off-airport landing site in support of federal law enforcement activities. The pilot said he landed on an unimproved strip of tundra, and during the landing roll the right main wheel hit an unseen ledge, and then a hole, and nosed down. According to the pilot, there were no known mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. The operator said the airplane sustained a broken engine mount, and structural damage to the forward fuselage and firewall. ## Factual narrative On August 20, 2005, about 1400 Alaska daylight time, a tundra tire-equipped Piper PA-18-150 airplane, N13833, sustained substantial damage when it nosed down during the landing roll on a remote tundra strip, about 80 miles north of Cold Foot, Alaska. The airplane was being operated by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage, Alaska, as a visual flight rules (VFR) federal public use law enforcement flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The solo commercial certificated pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and company flight following procedures were in effect. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge on August 25, the pilot said he landed on an unimproved strip of tundra to check sheep hunters. He said during the landing roll he changed the line of the roll from what he had determined in the air to a line that looked better on the ground. He said his right main wheel hit an "18-inch vertical face," which he had not seen due to low-hanging brush. The right main wheel then hit a hole, and the airplane nosed down. According to the pilot, there were no known mechanical anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. The operator said the airplane sustained a broken engine mount, and structural damage to the forward fuselage and firewall. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N13833](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N13833), registered now, S/N 18-8959, built 1972 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Piper PA-18-150 - Registry model: [Piper PA-18-150](https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-18-150) (registry code 7101828) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming 0-320 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (registry code 41508, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 18-8959 - Airframe hours: 3965 - Engines: Lycoming O-320-A2B 160 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Public aircraft - federal, Part 91 - Operator: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Registered owner: U.S. Department of the Interior - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: 100 hour, June 1, 2005 - Departed: Cold Foot, AK - Destination: Cold Foot, AK - Flight plan: Company VFR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 39; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land, single-engine sea; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, without waivers/limitations; last flight review October 1, 2003; seat: front; flight hours: 3,200 total, 3,150 as pilot in command, 150 in the last 90 days, 30 in the last 30 days, 9 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 50 °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 20050820022419A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20050820022419A), Aug 20, 2005: Piper PA18150, Coldfoot, AK, Substantial damage. (-23) N13833 had landed on a remote gravel airstrip 80 NM n of cold foot Alaska and was taxiing to park next to other aircraft (witness statement) and… ## Other investigations on N13833 (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 GAA16CA482](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/GAA16CA482), Sep 9, 2016: Piper PA18 (N13833), Gulkana, AK, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from a tree while maneuvering at low altitude. - [NTSB DEN75AD053](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN75AD053), Apr 15, 1975: Piper PA-18 (N13833), Rock Springs, WY, destroyed, 1 fatal 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.