- Date
- February 16, 2013, 17:15 local (21:15 UTC)
- Place
- Dutch Harbor, AK
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N15PRPiper PA-31-350
- Defining event
- Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 12, 2013
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- Parties
- FAA FSDO-03
- FAA report
- 20130216002649A
- Case key
- 86236
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's decision to land in wind conditions that exceeded the airplane's demonstrated crosswind capability, which resulted in a loss of airplane control during the landing roll.
Findings · 5
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The airline transport pilot departed on a visual flight rules cross-country flight in a twin-engine airplane with two passengers aboard. He reported that during the flight the weather began changing and he arrived at the destination airport in unforecast deteriorating weather conditions. Unable to circle to land into the wind, the pilot elected to land on runway 12 with a gusting quartering right tailwind. During the landing roll, a wind gust pushed the nose of the airplane to the right, and the airplane began to slide momentarily on an icy patch on the runway. While sliding sideways, the left main landing gear contacted bare pavement, which resulted in the collapse of the left main landing gear. As a result, the airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. The wind at the airport before landing was reported to be out of 339 degrees at 26 knots, with gusts to 35 knots. According to the pilot operating handbook for the accident airplane, the maximum demonstrated crosswind component for the airplane is 20 knots, and a plot of the current wind conditions at the time of the accident showed that the crosswind component for the accident landing was 30 knots, 10 knots above the maximum demonstrated component. No preaccident mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation were reported.
Factual narrative
The airline transport pilot departed on a visual flight rules cross-country flight, in a twin-engine airplane, with two passengers aboard. During the flight, he reported that the weather began changing, and he arrived at the destination airport in deteriorating weather conditions. Unable to circle to land into the wind, he elected to land on runway 12 in gusting wind conditions, requiring a correction for a quartering right tailwind. During the landing roll, a wind gust pushed the nose of the airplane to the right, and the airplane began to slide momentary on an icy patch on the runway. While sliding sideways, the left main landing gear then contacted bare pavement, which loaded the left main landing gear strut, resulting in the collapse of the left main landing gear. As a result, the airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. Winds at the airport prior to landing were reported as 339 degrees magnetic at 26 knots, with gusts to 35 knots. According to the pilot operating handbook for the accident airplane, the maximum demonstrated crosswind component for the airplane is 20 knots, and a plot of the current wind conditions at the time of the accident showed that the crosswind component for the accident landing was 30 knots, 10 knots above the maximum demonstrated component. No preaccident mechanical anomalies were reported.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N15PR
- Reported as
- Piper PA-31-350
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 31-8352011
- Airframe hours
- 15,247
- Engines
- Lycoming TIO-540 SER, 350 horsepower, reciprocatingLycoming TI0-540 SER, 310 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Grant Aviation Inc, doing business as Grant Aviation
- Registered owner
- Limbo LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · February 8, 2013
- Departed
- PAUT · Akutan, AK
- Destination
- PADU · Dutch Harbor, AK
- Flight plan
- Company VFR
- Airport
- PADU · Unalaska, runway 12, 3,900 × 100 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 39
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- January 24, 2013
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 6,007 total · 489 in this make and model · 5,843 as pilot in command · 139 in the last 90 days · 41 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 339° at 26 knots, gusting 35
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,200 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 30 °F, dew point 28 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.54 inHg
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 12, 2013, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 246 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.