- Date
- October 2, 1982, 22:00 local (Oct 3, 1982, 06:00 UTC)
- Place
- Near Port Heide, AK
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Aircraft
- N4025WPiper PA-32-300
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 2, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19821002063949I
- Case key
- 71916
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the incident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
According to the pilot, he was back taxiing along a beach after landing and while attempting to make a turn the nose gear collapsed. On examination, the pilot found that a bolt in the nose gear steering mechanism had failed due to excessive wear. This allowed the nose gear to over rotate in the turn, putting severe side loads on the gear.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4025W
- Reported as
- Piper PA-32-300
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 32-40039
- Airframe hours
- 2,800
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540 KIA5, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Norman Ovitt
- Registered owner
- Norman Ovitt
- Departed
- PTH · Port Heiden, AK
- Destination
- PTH · Port Heiden, AK
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
- 59
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Flight hours
- 16,337 total · 553 in this make and model · 300 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 97 °F
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 N4025W · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.