- Date
- November 28, 1992, 15:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Huslia, AK
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N69MATaylorcraft BC-12D
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed · report September 28, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19921128048459A
- Case key
- 5853
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 failure of the pilot to maintain proper glidepath due to loss of visual cues over snow covered terrain in shadow of setting sun. Factors relating to the accident were the reduced light of dusk and the reduction of visual perception of the pilot in civil twilight.
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 executed a normal touch and go in bright daylight at a snow covered airport, followed by the downwind leg directly into the bright setting artic sun. At the time the airplane turned to final approach, the pilot turned away from the sun, sunset occurred and the shadow of civil twilight passed across the threshold of the landing runway. The aircraft descended into the shadow, reducing the visual cues sufficeint for depth perception. The pilot could not account for the undershoot but believed 'it must have been a windshear.' The weather was clear, visibility unlimited, a steady headwind of 8 to 10 knots, and temperature at minus 11 degrees (f).
Aircraft
- Registration
- N69MA
- Reported as
- Taylorcraft BC-12D
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 6902
- Airframe hours
- 3,210
- Engine
- Continental C85-12F, 85 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Ernst, Donald E.
- Registered owner
- Ernst, Donald E.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 22, 1992 · 198 hours before
- Departed
- HSL
- Airport
- HSL · Huslia, runway 3, 3,000 × 60 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
- 42
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 204 total · 113 in this make and model · 170 as pilot in command · 77 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- 360° at 10 knots
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -11 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.