- Date
- April 14, 1996, 19:00 local (Apr 15, 1996, 03:00 UTC)
- Place
- Palmer, AK
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3908ZPiper PA-18
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 19, 1996
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Alaska Regional Office
- FAA report
- 19960414009069A
- Case key
- 2822
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 pilot, and his selection of unsuitable terrain on which to land a ski equipped airplane.
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 was landing a wheel/ski equipped airplane toward the northeast at an airstrip located on his farm. The landing area was about 1,500 feet long, 50 feet wide, and consisted of dry sod. The pilot indicated that the airplane slowed rapidly when the skis contacted the landing surface. Subsequently, the airplane's tail rose, and the airplane nosed over.
Factual narrative
On April 14, 1996, about 1900 Alaska daylight time, a wheel/ski equipped Piper PA-18, N3908Z, nosed over during landing at an unimproved landing area near Palmer, Alaska. The airplane was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) personal flight under Title 14 CFR 91 when the accident occurred. The airplane, registered to and operated by Wiederkehr Air Inc., Palmer, Alaska, sustained substantial damage. The certificated commercial pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The flight originated from the Yentna River area about 1700.
The pilot reported that he was landing toward the northeast at an airstrip located on his farm. The landing area is about 1,500 feet long, 50 feet wide, and consists of dry sod. The pilot indicated that the airplane decelerated when the skis contacted the landing surface. The airplane's tail began to rise and the airplane nosed over, damaging the rudder.
In the narrative portion of the pilot/operator report (NTSB form 6120.1/2), the pilot stated, in part: "...After landing on my sod runway the airplane slowed rapidly because the surface wasn't slick enough for skis."
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3908Z
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-7721
- Airframe hours
- 12,570
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Wiederkehr Air Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · March 22, 1996 · 10 hours before
- Departed
- Yentna River, AK
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- Farm Strip
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
- 40
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Single-engine sea, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 8,600 total · 7,900 in this make and model · 8,300 as pilot in command · 90 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 135° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 39 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.