- Date
- April 9, 2025, 10:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- Bethel, AK · Lake
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N57617Piper PA-18-150
- Defining event
- Takeoff-rejected takeoff: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20250409003539A
- Case key
- 200006
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 delayed decision to abort the takeoff when the airplane was not attaining sufficient airspeed for takeoff and subsequently departed the end of the lake and collided with terrain.
Findings · 3
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 pilot reported that he was departing a frozen lake in his tundra tire, tailwheel-equipped airplane. The surface of the lake was “polished” smooth by wind and there was a 6 knot, 90-degree crosswind. During takeoff, the tail took longer than normal to become airborne, the pilot was planning to abort the takeoff when the tail began to lift off the ground. He continued the takeoff, but it became apparent to the pilot that the airplane would not get airborne in time. He aborted the takeoff but the airplane had insufficient braking resulting in the airplane sliding off the lake into vegetation along the shore. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operations.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N57617
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-7709125
- Built
- 1977
- Airframe hours
- 4,978.6
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A2B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Elijah Air LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 21, 2025 · 10.6 hours before
- Destination
- PVT · Kotlik, AK
- Equipment
- Handheld GPS
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
- 38
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 27, 2025
- Seat
- Front
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 11,000 total · 800 in this make and model · 9,800 as pilot in command · 34 in the last 90 days · 34 in the last 30 days · 10 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 170° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,100 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 9 °F, dew point 7 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.88 inHg
- Observed at
- PABE, 1 nm away
- METAR
- PABE 091853Z 17007KT 10SM OVC021 M13/M14 A2988 RMK AO2 SLP123 T11281144
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 11, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.3 MB 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.
Other investigations on N57617 · 4
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.