- Date
- August 30, 1989, 17:45 local (Aug 31, 1989, 01:45 UTC)
- Place
- Talkeetna, AK
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N150LTPiper PA-18
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 18, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19890830033069A
- Case key
- 5249
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
Improper planning/decision by the plt. Contributing factors were rough terrain, rain, high density altitude, tailwind, gusts, and the pilot's improper use of brakes.
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
As the plt was lndg at an airstrip on a mountain top, the acft nosed over. He blamed the nose-over on a combination of rough landing area, gusty tailwind, rain on the windshield & heavy application of brakes. The 500' airstrip was at an elevation of about 4000' AGL.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N150LT
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-7718
- Airframe hours
- 2,342
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Talkeetna Air, doing business as Talkeetna Air Taxi
- Registered owner
- David J. Lee
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 30, 1989 · 77 hours before
- Departed
- TKA · Talkeetna, AK
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- Turnover Hill, runway 4, 500 × 100 ft, grass/turf
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
- 27
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 4,500 total · 800 in this make and model · 4,000 as pilot in command · 350 in the last 90 days · 100 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 45° at 10 knots, gusting 12
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.