ANC93LA142

After touching down near the midway point on the soft gravel runway, the pilot added power to make a go around. He quickly relaized that because of the soft surface the airplane was not accelerating sufficiently to get airborne before reaching the end of the runway. He reduced the power to idle and applied the brakes but the airplane continued off the end of the runway and nosed over.

On August 12, 1993, at 2215 Alaska daylight time, a wheel equipped Cessna 172 airplane, N65626, overran the runway and nosed over while landing at Black Rapids, Alaska. The private pilot and the one passenger, his father, were not injured. The airplane was substantially damaged. The personal flight, operating under 14 CFR Part 91, departed Fairbanks, Alaska, at approximately 2015. Visual meteorological conditions existed, and a Company VFR flight plan was filed.

Shortly after the accident, the pilot stated that he landed too fast and touched down about half way down the runway, then was not able to stop before overrunning the end of the runway. After leaving the runway, the airplane encountered a muddy area, then abruptly slowed down and nosed over.

Additional information

According to information from the National Weather Service, on the day of the accident at Delta Junction, Alaska, the sun set at 2207 and the end of civil twilight was at 1114. Delta Junction is located 30 miles north of Black Rapids.

On the NTSB Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2), the pilot reported that at the time of the accident the winds were "variable at 25 knots". However, he told FAA Inspector Donald S. Lindsey, FSDO-01, in Fairbanks, Alaska, that the winds had been "light and variable".

Following the accident, the passenger, Mr. Max B. Crowder, the pilot's father, was contacted by telephone. During the conversation, he stated the following in part: "I am not a pilot. I had flown with Keith only 2 times, other than the accident flight and that was on the 2 days preceding the accident. The strip was dry, soft, and rough. We first touched down about half way down the runway. Keith added power then cut it completely. He used the brakes, but we still went off the end, which was about a foot lower and nosed over. Right after the accident, a man named Chuck stopped and offered his assistance. He said we had landed with a tailwind. Chuck drove Keith to Delta Junction, then drove me on to Fairbanks."

The pilot had rented the airplane from The Aviation Company, 3788 South University Avenue, Fairbanks, Alaska 99709. Mr. Ken Snyder, owner of that company, was contacted following the accident. During the telephone conversation, Mr. Snyder said the following in part: "Just after the accident Keith Crowder (the accident pilot) telephoned and told me about the accident. He said he landed too fast and touched down too far down the runway, then discovered that the surface was soft. He added power and aborted the landing, but because of the soft surface, the airplane was not gaining airspeed fast enough to get airborne before reaching the end of the runway so he cut the engine power again. he applied brakes, but the airplane still ran off the end and nosed over."

The pilot had been issued his private pilot license on June 13, 1993.