# NTSB ANC12CA081: Piper J3F-65, N77EC, Beluga, AK, June 21, 2012 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: June 20, 2012, 20:30 local (Jun 21, 2012, 04:30 UTC) - Place: Beluga, AK - Coordinates: 61.42889, -150.791381 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.4289&lon=-150.7914&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Approach](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/500) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Approach-VFR go-around: Abnormal runway contact](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/090) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report November 26, 2012 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: FAA FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 84551 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC12CA081 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/84551/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=84551 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC12CA081 ## Probable cause The pilot's delayed decision to go around, which resulted in a hard landing. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Action: delayed action](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041025): Personnel issues › Action/decision · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Piper J3F-65, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041025/cases.md?model=7100536), [All aircraft, 894 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041025/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Approach-VFR go-around: Abnormal runway contact](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/090) (defining event); cases with it: [Piper J3F-65, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/090/sequence.md?model=7100536), [All aircraft, 1,506 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/090/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot stated that he had been landing his tailwheel-equipped airplane at an off-airport site. On his third landing attempt, he elected to go around, but the airplane landed hard. During the landing, the left main landing gear broke and the left wing contacted the ground, sustaining substantial damage to the wing spar. In a written statement, the pilot stated that the airplane may not have been developing full power, but in a telephone conversation he said that, "the engine was running good when the prop hit." ## Factual narrative The pilot stated that he had been landing his tailwheel-equipped airplane at an off-airport site. On his third landing attempt, he elected to go around, but the airplane landed hard. During the landing, the left main landing gear broke, and the left wing contacted terrain, sustaining substantial damage to the wing spar. In his written statement to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the pilot stated that the airplane may not have been developing full power, but in a telephone conversation with the NTSB investigator-in-charge he said, "the engine was running good when the prop hit." ## Aircraft - Registration: [N77EC](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N77EC), registered now, S/N 7025, built 1941 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: PIPER J3F-65 - Registry model: [Piper J3F-65](https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-j3f-65) (registry code 7100536) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Franklin 4AC176B series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/franklin-4ac176b-series) (registry code 27006, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 7025 - Airframe hours: 3697 - Engines: FRANKLIN 4AC176B SER 65 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, July 19, 2011, 13 hours before - Departed: Z41, Anchorage, AK - Destination: Z41, Anchorage, AK ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 48; injuries: none; airline transport, military; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine sea, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, without waivers/limitations; last flight review April 24, 2011; seat: front; flight hours: 6,500 total, 13 in this make and model, 36 in the last 90 days, 12 in the last 30 days, 4 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: calm - 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 20120620018319A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20120620018319A), Jun 20, 2012: Piper J3F-65, Mt Susitna, AK, Substantial damage. Pilot was practicing off-airport takeoffs and landings. On the 3rd approach, the pilot decided his approach to landing was not stable. Pilot initiated a… ## Docket (2 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 5, 2012, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=84551. 696 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 649 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40378008&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF - Record of Conversation - Pilot (item 2, .PDF, 47 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40378009&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Record%20of%20Conversation%20-%20Pilot-Master.PDF 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.