- Date
- September 15, 1990, 16:30 local (Sep 16, 1990, 00:30 UTC)
- Place
- Port Heiden, AK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Aircraft
- N59645Piper PA-18-160
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 15, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19900915042299A
- Case key
- 5455
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-in-command's failure to maintain aircraft control during a strong crosswind.
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 pilot stated that he was taxiing out on the taxiway when a gust of wind caught the airplane's left wing. The pilot then lost control of the airplane on the ground. The aircraft came to rest in an open ditch. At the time of the accident, the wind was 120 degrees at 20 knots gusting 30 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N59645
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-160
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 187809095
- Airframe hours
- 2,813
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Jay King, doing business as King Flying Service
- Registered owner
- Jay King
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · June 1, 1990 · 93 hours before
- Airport
- PTH · Port Heiden, runway 5, 6,250 × 100 ft, gravel
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
- 30
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 1,480 total · 1,363 in this make and model · 1,376 as pilot in command · 120 in the last 90 days · 35 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 20 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 3,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 43 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N59645 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.