- Date
- September 20, 1990, 13:00 local (21:00 UTC)
- Place
- Wood Creek, AK
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N5276DCessna 180-A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 2, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19900920044639A
- Case key
- 5461
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 attain proper lift off airspeed. Contributing to the accident was rough and uneven terrain.
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
During takeoff roll the aircraft drifted off the 20 ft wide gravel strip. The pilot continued the take off and got airborne but the aircraft settled back into a river that was off the end of the runway.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5276D
- Reported as
- Cessna 180-A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 50174
- Airframe hours
- 4,143
- Engine
- Continental O-470-K, 230 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Edwin W. White
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 8, 1990 · 20 hours before
- Departed
- NONE
- Flight plan
- VFR
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
- 45
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Military, Flight engineer, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 13,320 total · 350 in this make and model · 6,000 as pilot in command · 212 in the last 90 days · 92 in the last 30 days · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 39 °F, dew point 28 °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.
Other investigations on N5276D · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.