- Date
- March 31, 1983, 16:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- North Pole, AK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N1955CCessna 170B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19830331012509A
- Case key
- 4110
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
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
The plt of the ski equipped acft had taken off from an abandonded strip that was in a deteriorating condition with rocks scattered along the landing area. After arriving at his destination, he landed on a well graded rwy with packed snow that was suitable for either wheel or ski operation. After touchdown, the acft began to veer to the left. Subsequently, it went off the left side of the rwy & the left wing of the acft hit the left wing of a Piper PA-12, N3140M. After that, the acft continued until it struck a snowbank, then traveled about 50 ft further before coming to rest. An exam of the gear revealed that the left ski was worn. The overlayer was scraped away & aprx an 18 inch, outboard portion was bent inward. There was evidence that the ski had hit the snowbank while the left wing was low causing a transverse fracture & failure of the left axle (a non-standard C-185 axle). Improper bolts had been used to install the non-standard axles & no shims had been used to provide proper axle alignment.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1955C
- Reported as
- Cessna 170B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 26100
- Airframe hours
- 3,500
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-B, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Keith W. Mitchell
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 1, 1982
- Departed
- Chicken, AK
- Airport
- Lakloey, runway 24, 4,000 × 90 ft, snow
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
- 41
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,170 total · 1,170 in this make and model · 1,150 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 330° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 80 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 36 °F, dew point 16 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.